50 Best Strong Women Quotes - Inspirational Quotes From Strong Women - Good Housekeeping

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Women deserve to be celebrated for their extraordinary contributions to society, remarkable triumphs and unmatched fearlessness. Despite gender inequalities across all sectors, women continue to thrive and beat the odds. That's why we're rounding up the best quotes from women about strength to empower, motivate and inspire you to keep up the good fight.

From Grammy-award-winning singers like Alicia Keys to groundbreaking sports figures like Billie Jean King, this list includes powerful quotes from women who embody resilience, perseverance, confidence and courage.

These empowering messages are proof that women know their worth and what they're capable of accomplishing. Case in point: c-suite corner offices and political positions of power are no longer elusive. Hello, Madam Vice President Kamala Harris! Women continue to make tremendous inroads and there's no signs of it slowing down. So, take note from some of these famous female trailblazers and glass ceiling smashers and use their wise words as fuel to overcome any obstacle or challenges you may face.

And never forget who runs the world: girls!

1 Amy Poehler

"If you can dance and be free and be embarrassed, you can rule the world."

2 Audrey Hepburn

"I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day, and I believe in miracles."

3 Coco Chanel

"A girl should be two things: who and what she wants."

4 Ava DuVernay

"Ignore the glass ceiling and do your work. If you're focusing on the glass ceiling, focusing on what you don't have, focusing on the limitations, then you will be limited."

5 Beyoncé Knowles

The most alluring thing a woman can have is confidence."

6 Diane Von Furstenberg

"I always wanted to be a femme fatale. Even when I was a young girl, I never really wanted to be a girl. I wanted to be a woman."

7 Billie Jean King

"Champions keep playing until they get it right."

8 Alicia Keys

"Females are the most beautiful, gorgeous creatures in the whole world. And I think that we are gorgeous no matter what size we are."

9 Amelia Earhart

"Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but a challenge to others."

"Women are the real architects of society."

11 Marilyn Monroe

"Strong women don't have 'attitudes', we have standards."

12 Gloria Steinem

"Don't think about making women fit the world — think about making the world fit women."

13 Bozoma Saint John

Bring your whole self to the experience. Because the more we do that, the more that people get to see that, the more comfortable everybody's gonna be with it."

14 Audre Lorde

"I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own."

15 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

"I have chosen to no longer be apologetic for my femaleness and my femininity. And I want to be respected in all of my femaleness because I deserve to be."

16 Margaret Thatcher

"If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman."

17 Issa Rae

"Once I learned to like me more than others did, then I didn't have to worry about being the funniest or the most popular or the prettiest. I was the best me and I only ever tried to be that."

18 Dolly Parton

"If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader."

19 Hillary Clinton

"In too many instances, the march to globalization has also meant the marginalization of women and girls. And that must change."

20 Erin McKean

"You don't have to be pretty. You don't owe prettiness to anyone. Prettiness is not a rent you pay for occupying a space marked 'female.'"

21 Helen Keller

"Women have discovered that they cannot rely on men's chivalry to give them justice."

22 Oprah Winfrey

"Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another steppingstone to greatness."

23 Reese Witherspoon

"I encourage women to step up. Don't wait for somebody to ask you."

24 Judy Garland

"Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else."

25 Nancy Pelosi

"Women are leaders everywhere you look—from the CEO who runs a Fortune 500 company to the housewife who raises her children and heads her household. Our country was built by strong women, and we will continue to break down walls and defy stereotypes."

26 Kerry Washington

"Learn to embrace your own unique beauty, celebrate your unique gifts with confidence. Your imperfections are actually a gift."

27 Nora Ephron

"Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim."

28 Shirley Chisholm

"We must reject not only the stereotypes that others hold of us, but also the stereotypes that we hold of ourselves."

29 Malala Yousafzai

"I raise up my voice—not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. … We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back."

30 Nikita Gill

"Women that believe in each other can survive anything. Women who believe in each other create armies that will win kingdoms and wars."

31 Melinda Gates

"A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult."

32 Rihanna

"There's something special about a woman who dominates in a man's world. It takes a certain grace, strength, intelligence, fearlessness, and the nerve to never take no for an answer."

33 Sheryl Sandberg

"In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders."

34 Shonda Rhimes

"The beauty of being a feminist is that you get to be whatever you want. And that's the point."

35 Ruth Bader Ginsburg

"My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent."

36 Melinda Gates

"A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman."

37 Shawn Johnson

"Stay strong. Stand up. Have a voice."

38 Victoria Beckham

"Strong women, that's who I really respect"

39 Mindy Kaling

"If you don't see a clear path for what you want, sometimes you have to make it yourself."

40 Unknown

"A strong woman knows she has strength enough for the journey, but a woman of strength knows it is in the journey where she will become strong."

41 Simone Biles

"I'd rather regret the risks that didn't work out than the chances I didn't take at all."

42 Tina Turner

"You must love and care for yourself because that's when the best comes out."

43 Tory Burch

"We need to get women to the point where they aren't apologizing. It's time to take ownership in our success."

44 Maya Angelou

"I am woman phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that's me."

45 Michelle Obama

"There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish."

46 Tracee Ellis Ross

"I am learning every day to allow the space between where I am and where I want to be to inspire me and not terrify me."

47 Carly Simon

A really strong woman accepts the war she went through and is ennobled by her scars."

48 Eleanor Roosevelt

"Women are like teabags. We don't know our true strength until we are in hot water."

49 Luvvie Ajayi

"In a world that wants women to whisper, I choose to yell."

50 Emma Watson

"Girls should never be afraid to be smart."

Karla Pope Karla Pope is a longtime writer, editor and lifestyle blogger who enjoys exploring New York City with her two young children.

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