A good quote is small, portable, and does a surprising amount of work: on an invitation, it sets the tone before a guest reads another word. On a place card, it turns a seating logistics tool into something a guest keeps. In a speech, the right borrowed line, used sparingly, can carry more weight than an entire paragraph you wrote yourself. This isn't just a list of quotes. It's a guide to matching the right one to the right spot on your wedding day.

For the Invitation or Save-the-Date

A quote on your invitation needs to be short enough to sit comfortably alongside the practical details, date, time, venue, without crowding the page. Something warm and simple works better here than anything too weighty or long.

"Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same." — Emily Brontë

"Love doesn't make the world go round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile." — Franklin P. Jones

Keep the font size proportional and don't let the quote compete visually with your names or the date; it's a garnish, not the headline.

For the Wedding Programme or Order of Service

Guests actually read the programme while waiting for the ceremony to begin, which makes it a good spot for something slightly more reflective than the invitation allowed, since there's a captive audience with a few quiet minutes.

"Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies." — Aristotle

"To love and be loved is to feel the sun from both sides." — David Viscott

A quote here can also do double duty as a section header, printed above the order of readings and vows, giving the programme a bit more shape than a plain bulleted list.

For Place Cards or Table Names

If you're naming tables rather than numbering them, short, punchy quotes work well as a genuinely charming naming convention, especially paired with a theme, favourite films, songs, or destinations that mean something to you as a couple.

"You are my today and all of my tomorrows." — Leo Christopher

"Some love lasts a lifetime. True love lasts forever." — Anonymous

Keep each table's quote distinct rather than reusing variations of the same sentiment across every table; guests do notice and compare notes on which table got which line.

For a Speech or Toast

This is where quotes earn their keep the most, and also where they're most commonly overused. A single, well-placed quote near the end of a speech, right before the toast itself, lands far better than three or four scattered throughout, which starts to feel like the speaker is hiding behind other people's words rather than saying their own.

"Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be." — Robert Browning

"A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person." — Mignon McLaughlin

If you're the one giving the speech, read the quote aloud multiple times before the day so it doesn't come out sounding stiffly recited between your own more natural, conversational lines.

For the First Dance or Reception Signage

A quote projected, framed, or written on a small sign near the dance floor or gift table adds a nice decorative touch without requiring an elaborate design budget. Something with rhythm, that reads well at a glance rather than requiring careful study, works best here.

"I have found the one whom my soul loves." — Song of Solomon 3:4

"Only from the heart can you touch the sky." — Jalaluddin Rumi

Pair the quote with your wedding date or initials for a simple, cohesive piece of signage that also works well as a keepsake afterward.

For Your Vows

Borrowing a line for your vows is different from borrowing one for a speech; vows are meant to be the most personal words of your entire day, so a quote here should be used as a launching point for your own thoughts, not a substitute for them.

"Whatever you are, be a good one." — Abraham Lincoln

"Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction." — Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Use a line like the Saint-Exupéry quote above as an opening thought, then follow it immediately with your own specific promise about what "looking outward together" actually means for the two of you, the trip you're planning, the family you want to build, the life you're choosing. The quote sets up the idea; your own words should carry it home.

For Thank-You Cards

A short line on your post-wedding thank-you cards adds warmth to what's otherwise a fairly functional piece of correspondence.

"Gratitude is the memory of the heart." — Jean Baptiste Massieu

"We are not the same persons this year as last, nor are those we love. It is a happy chance if we, changing, continue to love a changed person." — W. Somerset Maugham

For a Guest Book Prompt

Instead of leaving your guest book with a blank page and a generic "leave your wishes," a quote at the top of each page gives guests a starting point and sets the tone for what kind of message you're hoping for, heartfelt, funny, or a mix of both.

"A happy marriage is a long conversation which always seems too short." — André Maurois

"Where there is love there is life." — Mahatma Gandhi

If you want something more playful to loosen guests up, especially useful for a video guest book or a Polaroid station, choose something a little lighter than the examples above; humour tends to produce more genuine, less generic messages than a purely sentimental prompt.

For Your Wedding Website or Social Media Announcement

A short quote paired with your engagement or save-the-date announcement gives the post a bit more character than a plain photo and caption. Keep it brief enough to work as a caption rather than a paragraph.

"I love you and that's the beginning and end of everything." — F. Scott Fitzgerald

"You are the finest, loveliest, tenderest, and most beautiful person I have ever known, and even that is an understatement." — F. Scott Fitzgerald

Since these will likely be seen by a much wider audience than your printed stationery, double-check attribution particularly carefully here; a misattributed quote on a public post is far more likely to be corrected publicly by a well-meaning follower than one printed quietly on a place card.

How to Choose Well, Regardless of Where It's Going

A few principles apply across every use case above. First, read the full quote and understand its original context before using it; some famous romantic-sounding lines come from surprisingly unromantic sources, a breakup poem, a satirical piece, a line spoken by a villain in the original work, and it's worth a quick check before committing something to print. Second, attribute correctly. Misattributed quotes circulate constantly online, and a quick search against a couple of independent sources before you commit to print avoids an embarrassing correction later. Third, less is more across the wedding as a whole; pick two or three spots where a quote genuinely adds something, rather than scattering them across every single piece of stationery and signage until the effect wears thin.

Sourcing Quotes Beyond This List

If none of the above feel quite right, look to sources with real personal meaning rather than a generic quote compilation: the lyrics of a song from your first date, a line from a book you both love, something one of your own parents or grandparents said about their marriage that's stuck with you over the years. A quote doesn't need to be famous to work beautifully at a wedding. It needs to be true to the two of you, and a less well-known line delivered with genuine feeling will always outperform a famous one that doesn't actually reflect your relationship.

Mixing Languages and Cultures

South African weddings often draw on more than one language or cultural tradition, and a quote doesn't have to come exclusively from English or Western literary sources to work beautifully. An Afrikaans proverb, an isiZulu saying about family and unity, or a line from a poet writing in another South African language can sit comfortably alongside the more commonly quoted English sources above, and often means considerably more to family members for whom that language and culture is home. If you use a quote in a language not everyone in the room shares, consider a brief translation printed alongside it, so the sentiment reaches every guest rather than only those who understand the original.

The Bottom Line

A wedding quote is a small detail that does outsized work when it's placed thoughtfully rather than scattered indiscriminately. Match the tone and length of the quote to where it's actually going to appear, verify it before it goes to print, and don't be afraid to look past famous names toward something more personal if it says what you actually mean. Used well, a handful of borrowed words can end up being some of the most quietly memorable details of the entire day.

Articles — page 23

Top Ten Contemporary First Dance Songs

Top 100 Most Requested Wedding Songs Part I

Top 100 Most Requested Wedding Songs Part II

Sweet Somethings: The Perfect Alternative Wedding Cake

Romantic Quotes Part I: Where to Use Them on Your Wedding Day

Romantic Quotes Part II

Romantic Quotes Part III: Lines for Vows, Toasts and Thank-You Cards

Marriage Quotes Part One

Marriage Quotes Part Two

Shakespeare Quotes

Creating an Ambience Through Your Venue

A Handy Resource for Wedding Music, Poems and Quotes