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A bitter jest, when it comes too near the truth, leaves a sharp sting behind it.

Asperæ facetiæ, ubi nimis ex vero traxere,
Acram sui memoriam relinquunt.

Original text (Latin)

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More quotes by Tacitus

It is the rare fortune of these days that one may think what one likes and say what one thinks.

Great empires are not maintained by timidity.

Our magistrates discharge their duties best at the beginning; and fall off toward the end.

Every great example of punishment has in it some injustice, but the suffering individual is compensated by the public good.

A woman after having parted with her virtue will hesitate at nothing.

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Tacitus (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.