For exam-takers! A collection of quotes that become profound and interesting once you understand their meaning
Are you unsure what to say to friends or younger classmates who are tense during exam season? Serious messages are great, but sometimes you want to help them relax with a lighthearted, funny encouragement that brings a little smile.
In fact, many great figures and popular characters have left us with memorable, humorous quotes.
In this article, we’ll introduce quotes from historical figures and characters that are perfect for cheering on exam-takers—lines filled with humor and warmth that become even funnier when you catch the meaning.
Turn that pressure into motivation!
- Gives you the power to overcome entrance exams! Short quotes by great and famous people.
- For those striving in their studies! A collection of inspiring quotes about giving your best that speaks to the heart.
- You can push a little further! Inspiring quotes from great figures to boost your study motivation
- Powerful words give you a push! Words that help you try even harder than before.
- Mottos that are sure to lift your spirits and keep you positive!
- Just remembering them fills you with courage! Striking quotes that touch the heart from great figures and famous people
- Witty quotes that make you chuckle without thinking
- [Graduation] A moving line to add to a message board: words that touch the heart
- Quotes that save your heart in times of pain or hardship
- Guaranteed to move you! Memorable words by great figures and famous people.
- Heartfelt! Inspiring Quotes Left by Great Figures of Japan
- Words from great and famous people that make you forget negativity in an instant!
- It’s sure to resonate most with those who are striving! Words of encouragement from great figures and famous people.
To All Examinees! A Collection of Quotes That Become Profound and Fascinating Once You Understand Their Meaning (1–10)
Even if someone else is better than you, that is not a disgrace. But if you are not better this year than you were last year, that is truly a disgrace.John Lubbock
John Lubbock, who was active in nineteenth-century Europe with a focus on Britain, left achievements in finance and archaeology.
The scholar—said to have influenced Japan in the Meiji era—left a famous quote about what we should compare ourselves to.
It speaks to those who suffer by comparing themselves to others, saying that the only comparison that truly matters is between one’s past and present self, and that we should feel ashamed only if we are not better than we were before.
It encourages us to first assess our current situation clearly and focus solely on becoming a better version of ourselves—offering a cue to shift our mindset.
If you give up, the game is over right there.Mitsuyoshi Anzai, Slam Dunk
Slam Dunk is a popular basketball-themed manga, and its anime and movie adaptations also drew a lot of attention.
Among its many memorable lines, there’s a famous quote from Coach Anzai, who also serves as the team’s supervisor.
It’s addressed to a student on the verge of giving up, and you can feel the teacher’s kindness in his wish for the student to take a brave step forward.
As long as you keep challenging yourself without giving up, there’s still plenty of possibility left—these words genuinely lift your spirits in a positive way, don’t they?
Effort is always rewarded. If there is effort that isn’t rewarded, then it can’t yet be called effort.Sadaharu Oh
Sadaharu Oh is an indispensable figure when talking about Japanese baseball, not only for his achievements as a player but also for the many results he produced as a manager.
These words express the relationship between effort and outcome, evoking a connection to the record he left behind.
If results haven’t materialized, it means the effort cannot yet be called true effort; it urges us to keep piling on further effort.
It’s a message that says, “Keep working until the results come—don’t give up,” a powerful push that makes you feel encouraged to persevere.
For Exam-Takers! A Collection of Quotes That Become Deep and Fascinating Once You Understand Their Meaning (11–20)
Genius is an ordinary person who makes an extraordinary effort.Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein, a theoretical physicist born in Germany, is known as one of the greatest physicists of the 20th century, having proposed numerous theories that have left a lasting legacy.
This is a famous quote from that great physicist expressing his view on how genius and effort are related.
It conveys the idea that even those called geniuses are not extraordinary beings; rather, the results that earn someone the label of genius come from persistent effort by an ordinary person.
Because these words come from someone regarded as a genius, they carry persuasive power: if you keep putting in the effort, anyone can become someone who is called a genius.
Study is the gradual discovery of one’s own ignorance.William Durant
Will Durant, who made his mark in America as a historian and philosopher, is also remembered for helping to popularize philosophy.
Here is a famous quote by this great philosopher—whose career as a teacher is also often recounted—that focuses on the question of why we study.
He argues that studying is the process of discovering and resolving what we did not know, and that its purpose is to help us grow beyond our own ignorance.
These are words that are worth revisiting precisely when you feel stuck in your studies, reminding you of the joy of broadening and deepening your knowledge.
The word “give up” doesn’t exist in Shinji Ishimaru’s dictionary.Shinji Ishimaru
These are the words Mr.
Shinji Ishimaru spoke right after the Tokyo gubernatorial election results came in, laying out how he intends to move forward from here.
They express a resolve to devote his life to progress, insisting that this is no time to give up if we are to change a Japan facing daunting challenges.
The phrasing seems consciously reminiscent of Napoleon’s words, which is noteworthy, and it conveys an attitude of aiming to accomplish something monumental—akin to a revolution.
While declaring his own refusal to give up, he also seems to teach people the importance of not giving up.
Beneath mud and earth lies solid rock; above clouds and mist shines the sun. At the height of discontent, there is still fortune, nor is hope absent.Kanzo Uchimura
I would like to introduce a famous saying by Kanzo Uchimura: “Beneath the mud lies bedrock; above the clouds and mist shines the sun.
Even at the height of complaint, happiness and hope are not absent.” Kanzo Uchimura was a Christian thinker active in the Meiji era.
Disasters can bring many hardships.
At such times, Uchimura left words he hoped we would remember.
It is said to mean that even when times are painful and difficult now, a stable and bright future surely awaits beyond.
He likens difficult situations to mud, and the bedrock represents the strength within us that lies beneath these serious problems.
Furthermore, he tells us that even when we feel or voice complaints, happiness and hope still exist.
Life brings all kinds of experiences, doesn’t it? Even so, we are reminded of the importance of maintaining a positive outlook.
