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Horace

Roman lyric poet, 65 BC–8 BC. 1 explained quote.

Contorniate medallion with a portrait of Horace
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“Carpe diem.”
Horace · 23 BC
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“Carpe diem.”
Horace · Odes, Book 1, Ode 11 · 23 BC · Poet

Latin for “seize the day,” or more literally “pluck the day” like ripe fruit. Horace tells a friend to enjoy today instead of worrying about a future no one can know.

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About Horace

Quintus Horatius Flaccus, known in English as Horace, was the son of a freed slave who became one of the great poets of Rome under the emperor Augustus.

His Odes, Satires and Epistles are witty, warm and practical, full of advice about friendship, moderation and enjoying the present, and they have supplied European languages with dozens of phrases.

More lines by Horace

Short quotes checked against their sources.

  • “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori. (It is sweet and fitting to die for one's country.)”
    Odes, Book 3, Ode 2