“Conversation would be vastly improved by the constant use of four simple words: I do not know.”

“What do I want? Why is that simple question - four little words - so impossible to answer?”

“I have no special desire to go crawl around in caves, but I really like the word [spelunking] and want to use it in conversation. I do a lot of things just to use words I like.”

“I like to use simple words, but in a complicated way.”

“We have the oddest conversations.” “I find this conversation more than odd. It’s positively shocking.” “Why? Because I understand the principle of a logarithm? I know you’re used to speaking to me in small, simple words, but I did have the finest education England can offer a young aristocrat. Attended both Eton and Oxford.”“Yes, but . . . somehow, I never pictured you earning high marks in maths.”

“Why use a 10 letter word you can barely pronounce...when a four letter one will do.”