Vol. 06 · Misquoted ·Book ·305 of 348
"To err is human."
They never said that.
What people say
"To err is human."
What was actually said
"To err is human, to forgive divine." Alexander Pope — An Essay on Criticism (1711)
Why it stuck
Half the line, dropped. Without the "forgive divine" pivot, the aphorism becomes a shrug — the opposite of Pope's ethical charge.
Know another line by heart?
Play the duel and see how many you can spot. Or browse the whole shelf.