# Many Controversies Would Cease If the Imperfections of Language Were Weighed by John Locke > “I am apt to imagine, that, were the imperfections of language, as the instrument of knowledge, more thoroughly weighed, a great many of the controversies that make such a noise in the world, would of themselves cease; and the way to knowledge, and perhaps peace too, lie a great deal opener than it does.” > **— John Locke**, *An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, 1690* ## Sources and Context - **Primary source:** John Locke, [*An Essay Concerning Human Understanding*](https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10616), Book III, chapter IX, “Of the Imperfection of Words,” §21 (1690); Project Gutenberg transcription, checked word for word. - **Exact original:** “But I am apt to imagine, that, were the imperfections of language, as the instrument of knowledge, more thoroughly weighed, a great many of the controversies that make such a noise in the world, would of themselves cease; and the way to knowledge, and perhaps peace too, lie a great deal opener than it does.” The Reminder omits the opening “But” and capitalizes “I”; the words are otherwise unchanged. - **Context:** Book III is Locke's account of words as signs of ideas; he argues that many disputes are verbal and would end if the terms were defined. Webster's 1828 principle that language is “the expression of ideas” stands in this Lockean tradition. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/War With Empire|War With Empire]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Simple Reminders|Simple Reminders]] - **Article:** [[articles/war with empire/Authorship of the West|Authorship of the West]] - **Article:** [[articles/The New Dictionary of the Machine Regime|The New Dictionary of the Machine Regime]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/Authorship of the West|Authorship of the West]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Language|Language]] - [[wiki/Semantic Jurisdiction|Semantic Jurisdiction]] - [[wiki/Linguistic Relativity|Linguistic Relativity]] - [[wiki/Lexical Omission|Lexical Omission]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “I am apt to imagine, that, were the imperfections of language, as the instrument of knowledge, more thoroughly weighed, a great many of the controversies that make such a noise in the world, would of themselves cease; and the way to knowledge, and perhaps peace too, lie a great deal opener than it does.” — John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, 1690 https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-john-locke-imperfections-of-language-controversies ```