Donald Trump
Joe Biden
Entertainment
Politics
Snopes Classics
Fact ChecksMisattributed
Misattributed
Misattributed
This rating indicates that quoted material (speech or text) has been incorrectly attributed to a person who didn't speak or write it.

Learn more about our rating system here.
Although Jefferson certainly expressed disdain and mistrust of banking institutions and paper currency on many occasions, this particular quotation bears all the hallmarks of being a retroquote.

Did Thomas Jefferson Say 'Banks and Corporations Will Deprive' People of 'All Property'?

Written by:
David Mikkelson
Dec. 8, 2008 Given the fear and uncertainty engendered by the economy, it was only a matter of time until som ...
Read More
Dr. Maya Angelou, who passed away in May 2014, became one of those figures (à la Mark Twain or Abraham Lincoln) who ended up with more of other people’s words attributed to her than words of her own.

Did Maya Angelou Write a Poem Titled, 'I Am a Christian'?

Written by:
David Mikkelson
July 27, 2006 The poem has been anthologized in several books, including "Chicken Soup for the Christian Famil ...
Read More
Audrey Hepburn poses for her publicity photo to promote the film Sabrina.

Did Audrey Hepburn Author These 'Beauty Tips'?

Written by:
Barbara Mikkelson David Mikkelson
May 16, 2001 "For attractive lips, speak with words of kindness," the viral quote begins.
Read More

Is This a Real Quote by Nelson Mandela?

Written by:
Nur Ibrahim
Sept. 9, 2020 A quote attributed to Mandela, former president of South Africa, said: "Fools divide themselves ...
Read More
Franklin Graham giving a speech

The American Dream Ended Last Night in Ohio?

Written by:
David Mikkelson
April 2, 2015 A speech by Franklin Graham laments that the American dream ended with the reelection of Barack ...
Read More

Did Baltimore Sun Publish 'The Black Dilemma'?

Written by:
Dan Evon
June 10, 2015 The controversial essay has actually been circulating on the internet since at least September 2014.
Read More

Did Bill O'Reilly Write an Essay Calling COVID-19 a Chinese Bioweapon?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
April 13, 2020 A conspiracy-tinged essay attributed to the former Fox News host went viral on social media.
Read More

Did Johns Hopkins Publish This 'Excellent Summary' of COVID-19 Advice?

Written by:
Dan Evon
March 30, 2020 If you're looking for reliable COVID-19 information from Johns Hopkins University, please check ...
Read More

Did George Washington Say This About Citizens' Right to Bear Arms?

Written by:
Dan Evon
Jan. 22, 2020 George Washington is in the running for the United States' most misquoted president.
Read More
Person, Human, Fashion

Did Joan Rivers Say Letting People Think You're Mean Is 'One of the Most Rebellious Things a Woman Can Do'?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Oct. 27, 2022 She didn't say it, but it's possible she thought it.
Read More
Person, Human, Sitting

No Evidence Freud Made This Snark About the Irish

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Oct. 22, 2022 The quote is shared widely.
Read More
Charles Darwin

Did Darwin Say It Is 'Not the Strongest of Species That Survives' but the 'Most Adaptable'?

Written by:
Nur Ibrahim
Oct. 12, 2022 The English naturalist has often been the subject of misattributions.
Read More
A fake quote attributed to Lord Macaulay was titled My India in 1835 and mentioned conquering India and the words break the very backbone of this nation.

Is Macaulay Quote About 'Dominating' India with English Culture Real?

Written by:
Jordan Liles
Oct. 11, 2022 A reader emailed us and said they spotted the quote meme on WhatsApp.
Read More
Pope Francis

Did Pope Francis Say This About 'Rivers Drinking Their Own Water'?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Sept. 23, 2022 The quote has been online longer than Francis has been pope. A version of it even made it into a ...
Read More
Attributed to Marilyn Monroe: "If you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.”

Did Marilyn Monroe Really Say This?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Sept. 20, 2022 "If you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best," Monroe ...
Read More
A quote meme claimed that Thomas Paine once wrote or said that the duty of a true patriot is to protect his country from its government.

Did Thomas Paine Write, 'The Duty of a True Patriot Is to Protect His Country from Its Government'?

Written by:
Jordan Liles
Sept. 14, 2022 We recommend taking a few seconds to search Google for reliable sources before blindly sharing q ...
Read More
Hat, Clothing, Apparel

Did Queen Elizabeth Say This About the Need To 'Kick Some Ass'?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Sept. 13, 2022 The Queen could be said to have kicked some proverbial ass during the Second World War, but did ...
Read More
Morgan Freeman

Did Morgan Freeman Say This About Stupidity?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Sept. 12, 2022 Freeman is frequently (and falsely) credited with morsels of viral internet wisdom.
Read More
Marilyn Monroe

Did Marilyn Monroe Say, 'Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History'?

Written by:
Bethania Palma
Aug. 4, 2022 The quote has become famous, but its original context was different than what many assume.
Read More
Marjorie Taylor Greene never said the built in antenna joke quote that was shown in a meme, nor did Lauren Boebert or Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Did Marjorie Taylor Greene Confuse 'Antenna' for a Country?

Written by:
Jordan Liles
July 19, 2022 According to a social media meme, Greene once said, "I just bought a TV th ...
Read More