Vol. 06 · Misquoted ·Play ·112 of 348
"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."
They never said that.
What people say
"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."
What was actually said
"Heav'n has no rage like love to hatred turn'd, / Nor Hell a fury like a woman scorn'd." Zara — William Congreve, The Mourning Bride (1697)
Why it stuck
The real couplet is a parallelism across two lines. Quoting the second half alone drops the heaven/hell symmetry that made the line memorable in the first place.
Know another line by heart?
Play the duel and see how many you can spot. Or browse the whole shelf.