Vol. 06 · Misquoted ·Book ·156 of 348
"It is better to be feared than loved."
They never said that.
What people say
"It is better to be feared than loved."
What was actually said
"If it is necessary to choose, it is much safer to be feared than loved, but one must seek to avoid that hatred." Niccolò Machiavelli — The Prince, Chapter XVII (1513)
Why it stuck
Machiavelli's full sentence is conditional — "if you must choose" — and ends with a sharp caveat about hatred, not a blanket preference for fear. The modern quote strips the hedge.
Machiavelli was arguing that beloved rulers were safest when also feared, not that fear should replace love.
Know another line by heart?
Play the duel and see how many you can spot. Or browse the whole shelf.