The heights by great men reached and kept were not… – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Last updated: Tuesday 10th March 2026

Quick Answer

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: "The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight..."

Historical Context

American Poet

Meaning & Interpretation

When to Use This Quote

Recent Quotes

View all recent quotes

Saturday 7th March 2026

It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.

A quote by Leon C. Megginson

Friday 6th March 2026

The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.

A quote by Albert Einstein

Thursday 5th March 2026

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.

A quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wednesday 4th March 2026

I think, therefore I am.

A quote by René Descartes

Tuesday 3rd March 2026

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

A quote by Will Durant

Thursday 29th January 2026

Still I Rise

Experience the defiant power of Maya Angelou's most celebrated poem about resilience.

Recent Facts

View all recent facts

Saturday 7th March 2026

There Are More Possible Chess Games Than Atoms in the Observable Universe

The Shannon number estimates there are 10^120 possible chess games, while the observable universe contains approximately 10^80 atoms.

Friday 6th March 2026

Bananas Are Naturally Radioactive

Bananas contain potassium-40, a naturally occurring radioactive isotope. You would need to eat about 10 million bananas at once for the radiation to be lethal.

Thursday 5th March 2026

Cleopatra Lived Closer in Time to the Moon Landing Than to the Building of the Great Pyramid

The Great Pyramid was built around 2560 BC, Cleopatra lived around 30 BC, and the Moon landing was in 1969 AD. Cleopatra was closer to us than to the pyramid builders.

Wednesday 4th March 2026

A Teaspoon of Neutron Star Would Weigh About 6 Billion Tonnes

Neutron stars are so incredibly dense that a single teaspoon of their material would weigh approximately 6 billion tonnes on Earth.

Tuesday 3rd March 2026

The Human Body Contains Enough Iron to Make a Small Nail

The average adult body contains about 3-4 grams of iron, mostly in haemoglobin, which is enough to forge a small iron nail.

Thursday 29th January 2026

Bananas Are Berries

Uncover the surprising botanical truth about what makes a berry a berry — and why common sense fails us.

Recent Words

View all recent words

Saturday 7th March 2026

Palimpsest

A manuscript or surface on which later writing has been superimposed on earlier writing.

Friday 6th March 2026

Ephemeron

A thing that exists or is used for only a short period.

Thursday 5th March 2026

Loquacious

Tending to talk a great deal; talkative.

Wednesday 4th March 2026

Defenestration

The act of throwing someone or something out of a window.

Tuesday 3rd March 2026

Susurrus

A whispering or rustling sound.

Monday 2nd March 2026

Verisimilitude

The appearance of being true or real.