Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem
“Mix a little folly with your wisdom.”
Horace, Odes 4.12.27
What does “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem” mean?
Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem translates as “Mix a little folly with your wisdom.”
Do not be serious all the time. A little silliness is healthy.
“Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Misce | mix! | a command (imperative) of misceo, “to mix”; addressed to one person |
| stultitiam | folly, foolishness | accusative singular of stultitia, “foolishness”; the object of misce |
| consiliis | with your counsels, with wisdom | dative plural of consilium, “plan, counsel”; here “with serious plans” |
| brevem | short, brief | accusative singular feminine of brevis, “short”; agrees with stultitiam |
How to pronounce “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem”
The main differences are misce (MIS-keh vs MEE-cheh), the ti in stultitiam (tee-ah vs tsee-ah) and v in brevem (w vs v). The stress falls on the same syllables in both.
The story behind it
Word for word the line says “mix folly, short, with counsels”. The adjective brevem belongs to stultitiam, so the sense is “mix a short (brief) folly into your serious plans”. The English “a little folly with your wisdom” captures that.
It comes from Horace, Odes 4.12, a short poem in which he invites a friend, usually taken to be the poet Virgil, to a party. Horace, a poet of the Augustan age, often wrote about enjoying the moment without losing a sense of balance.
The line has lived on as a gentle defence of play. It does not tell you to be reckless, only that sensible people also need a moment of nonsense, and that this makes the effort of serious work easier to bear.
How to use “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem”
It suits a card to a friend who works too hard, a toast or party invitation, a desk motto, or a tattoo for someone who values humour as well as discipline. It also fits an essay on leisure or on balance in life.
- Latin
- Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem
- English
- Mix a little folly with your wisdom.
- Source
- Horace, Odes 4.12.27
- Era
- Classical
- Theme
- Joy
Common mistakes
- It does not praise folly itself. The point is a brief, small dose of it, which is why brevem matters.
- Brevem agrees with stultitiam, not with consiliis. It means “short folly”, not “short counsels”.
- Misce is a command to one person. To address several people the form is miscete.
- The popular English paraphrase “mix a little foolishness with your serious plans” is a loose rendering. The Latin is more compact.
Questions about “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem”
What does “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem” mean literally?
Literally “Mix brief folly with your counsels”. In natural English: mix a little foolishness in with your serious plans.
Who wrote “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem”?
Horace, in Odes 4.12, near the end of the poem. It is a line of advice from the poet to a friend, traditionally thought to be Virgil.
How do you pronounce “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem”?
In classical Latin: MIS-keh stool-TIH-tee-ahm kon-SIH-lee-ees BREH-wem. In church Latin: MEE-cheh stool-TEE-tsee-ahm kon-SEE-lee-ees BREH-vem.
Is “Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem” good Latin for a tattoo?
Yes, it is genuine Horace and the grammar is sound. Just keep the word order and endings as they are, and make sure brevem stays in the text, since it carries the “little” in the meaning.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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