Short Sibling Quotes: 20 Lines for Brothers and Sisters, Each Traced to Its Source
Words My Family Quotes Editors
The most quoted sentence about brothers in the English language is five words long, and it was spoken by a man trying to dodge a question. "Am I my brother's keeper?" is Cain's answer in Genesis when he is asked where Abel is. Short lines about siblings tend to work like that: a few words carrying a whole shared history, sometimes tender, often a little sharp.
This page collects 20 of them. Every line below was checked against the original book, letter, play or film, and each one comes with its source, its length in words and a note on when it fits. If you need something longer and warmer, our page of unconditional sibling love quotes goes deeper; this one is for texts, captions, card fronts and the line you say before you raise a glass.
Brothers, in Few Words
Some of the oldest lines about brothers are also the shortest, and several began life as something darker than they sound on a birthday card.
"Am I my brother's keeper?" — Genesis 4:9, King James Version, 1611
5 words. Cain says this after he has killed Abel, so in the original it is a lie wrapped in a shrug. Over the centuries the question flipped: people now quote it to answer "yes", meaning that we do owe our brothers protection. Use it for a brother who always looked out for you, and expect the person who knows the story to smile.
"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers." — William Shakespeare, Henry V, Act 4, Scene 3, c. 1599
9 words. King Henry says it to his outnumbered army before Agincourt, and the brothers he means are soldiers, not siblings. The phrase "band of brothers" has since moved into family use, for teams of brothers, reunions and group photos. It suits three or more siblings better than two.
"We came into the world like brother and brother, / And now let's go hand in hand, not one before another." — William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors, Act 5, Scene 1, c. 1594
20 words. These are the last lines of the play, spoken by Dromio of Ephesus to the twin he has just found again after a lifetime apart. They had been arguing about which of them is the elder, and this couplet settles it: neither goes first. It is a good fit for twins, or for brothers ending a quarrel about who is in charge.
"Be comforted, dear little sister, and sleep in peace, God will not forsake us." — Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Hansel and Gretel," Children's and Household Tales, 1812 (English translation by Edgar Taylor and Marian Edwardes)
14 words. Hansel says this the night he has filled his pockets with white pebbles, after the two children overheard the plan to leave them in the forest. It is the big-brother promise in its oldest form: I have a plan, go to sleep. Older brothers sometimes send the first half on its own to a younger sister before a hard week.
"There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother." — Proverbs 18:24, King James Version, 1611
10 words. The proverb uses a brother as the standard of loyalty and then imagines a friend who goes further. People quote it both ways: for a best friend who has become family, and as a compliment to a brother who is also your closest friend. If you send it to a brother, add a line making clear which reading you mean.
Sisters, Said Plainly
Sisters wrote some of the best lines about sisters, and several of them come from real letters and memoirs rather than from fiction. If sisters are all you need, our page of short sister quotes sorts 13 more sourced lines by moment, from big-sister teasing to a sister's funeral.
"Stronger than a man, simpler than a child, her nature stood alone." — Charlotte Brontë, "Biographical Notice of Ellis and Acton Bell," 1850
12 words. Charlotte wrote this about her sister Emily, who died of tuberculosis in December 1848 after refusing to give up her household work. The notice, written for a new edition of Wuthering Heights, was also where Charlotte told readers that "Ellis Bell" was a woman. The sentence fits a sister who is tough and straightforward at the same time, and it works well in a eulogy.
"Till I have your disposition, your goodness, I never can have your happiness." — Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, chapter 55, 1813
13 words. Elizabeth says this to Jane on the night Jane gets engaged, after Jane wishes her sister could be as happy. It is half compliment, half joke at her own expense, which is exactly how many sisters talk. Good for an engagement card from a sister, especially if you can't resist adding Elizabeth's next line about waiting for "another Mr. Collins."
"I have now attained the true art of letter-writing, which we are always told, is to express on paper exactly what one would say to the same person by word of mouth." — Jane Austen, letter to Cassandra Austen, 3 January 1801
32 words, the longest line here. Austen wrote it to her older sister from the family home at Steventon, and the manuscript is now held by the Morgan Library in New York. Most of the surviving Austen letters are to Cassandra, and they read like talk. It earns its place on a short page because it is the best rule there is for writing to a sibling: write the way you would say it.
"O rose of May! / Dear maid, kind sister, sweet Ophelia!" — William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5, c. 1600
10 words. Laertes says this when he comes home and finds his sister out of her mind with grief. It is a cry of loss, not a compliment, so keep it for memorials. In a sympathy card for someone who has lost a sister, "kind sister" on its own can say a lot.
"We've got Father and Mother, and each other." — Louisa May Alcott, Little Women, chapter 1, 1868
8 words. Beth says it from her corner, in the book's first scene, after her three sisters have complained about a poor Christmas. It is the quiet sister answering the loud ones, and it changes the mood of the room. It may be the best short line for four sisters, and it works for brothers too if you leave out the attribution.
Funny Lines About Sharing a Childhood
Siblings were each other's first audience, so the funniest lines about them tend to be about boredom, bossiness and who was in charge of whom.
"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents." — Louisa May Alcott, Little Women, chapter 1, 1868
7 words. These are the first words of Little Women, "grumbled" by Jo while lying on the rug. Readers of every generation have recognised the sound of a sister complaining before the holidays have even started. Ideal for a December group chat or a caption under a photo of everyone in matching pyjamas.
"I'm the man of the family now Papa is away." — Louisa May Alcott, Little Women, chapter 1, 1868
10 words. Jo uses this to cut in when Meg begins "I'm the oldest," in an argument over who will buy their mother slippers. It is a perfect record of the sibling power struggle: one claims age, the other claims a title. Send it to the sibling who took charge the moment your parents left the house.
"Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do." — Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, chapter 1, 1865
21 words. The most famous children's book in English opens with a girl bored by her older sister, who is reading a book with "no pictures or conversations" in it. The whole of Wonderland follows from that sibling boredom. It makes a sly caption for a photo of a younger sibling being dragged along on an older one's outing.
"My sister … had established a great reputation with herself and the neighbours because she had brought me up 'by hand.'" — Charles Dickens, Great Expectations, chapter 2, 1861
20 words (shortened). Pip's sister, Mrs. Joe Gargery, is twenty years older and raised him after their parents died, and the joke is that "by hand" turns out to mean her heavy hand. Dickens is not being gentle; she is one of fiction's least cosy big sisters. Use it only with a sibling who will laugh, ideally one who really did help raise you.
"We are generally in harmony, with occasional bickerings — as it should be among near relations." — Charles Lamb, "Mackery End, in Hertfordshire," Essays of Elia, 1823
15 words. Lamb wrote this about his sister Mary, called "Bridget Elia" in the essays, with whom he lived for most of his adult life. The phrase "as it should be" is what makes it: the bickering is part of the arrangement, not a failure of it. It suits adult siblings who share a house, a business or the care of a parent.
"Do you want to build a snowman?" — Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, song from Frozen, Walt Disney Animation Studios, 2013
7 words. In the film, Anna sings it at her sister Elsa's closed door, first as a small child and then over the years as Elsa keeps shutting her out. For a generation of children it became shorthand for one sibling asking another to come back and play. It works as a first snow text, or as a gentle opener to a sibling you haven't spoken to in a while.
Grown Siblings: Falling Out and Making Up
Adult siblings share fewer rooms and more responsibilities, and the lines that suit them are about patience, repair and staying close.
"Don't let the sun go down upon your anger. Forgive each other, help each other, and begin again tomorrow." — Louisa May Alcott, Little Women, chapter 8, 1868
19 words. Marmee whispers this to Jo the night after Amy has burned Jo's manuscript and Jo has refused to forgive her. Jo ignores it, and the next day Amy nearly drowns through the ice. The first sentence echoes Ephesians 4:26; the second is Alcott's own, and it is the more useful one to send after an argument.
"I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt." — Genesis 45:4, King James Version, 1611
10 words. Joseph says this when he finally reveals himself to the brothers who sold him into slavery years before. In the next verse he tells them not to be angry with themselves. It is the Bible's great sibling reconciliation, and it reads best in a reflection or a reunion speech rather than a text.
"I wish that people who are conventionally supposed to love each other would say to each other, when they fight, 'Please — a little less love, and a little more common decency.'" — Kurt Vonnegut, Slapstick, Prologue, 1976
31 words. Vonnegut wrote the prologue after a trip with his older brother, Bernard, to their uncle Alex's funeral in Indianapolis, and in it he also remembers their sister Alice, who died in 1958. He says his longest experience of "common decency" has been with Bernard. Quote the last ten words on their own when a family argument needs cooling down.
"Bridget Elia has been my housekeeper for many a long year." — Charles Lamb, "Mackery End, in Hertfordshire," Essays of Elia, 1823
11 words. The essay opens with this line, and behind its lightness is a hard story. In 1796 Mary Lamb killed their mother during a fit of mental illness, and Charles took legal responsibility for her care so she would not be kept in an asylum for life. The two lived and wrote together for nearly forty years. Few short lines say "I stayed" so lightly.
Matching a Line to Where It's Going
A short quote works best when it is the second thing you say, after something only the two of you would know. Here is where each kind of line tends to fit, with word counts to help.
| Where it's going | Room you have | Lines that fit |
|---|---|---|
| Birthday text | Under 15 words | "Am I my brother's keeper?" (5), "We've got Father and Mother, and each other" (8) |
| Photo caption | Under 10 words | "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers" (9), "Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents" (7) |
| Engagement or wedding card | One or two sentences | Elizabeth to Jane (13), Dromio's "hand in hand" couplet (20) |
| After an argument | A short paragraph | Marmee's "Forgive each other…" (19), Vonnegut's "a little less love, and a little more common decency" (10 if trimmed) |
| Reunion or toast | A minute of speaking | Joseph to his brothers (10), Lamb on "occasional bickerings" (15) |
| Sympathy or eulogy | As much as you need | Charlotte Brontë on Emily (12), Laertes' "kind sister" (10) |
Three short messages to adapt
These are our own drafts, not quotations. Swap in a detail from your own family.
- To a brother, on his birthday: "Am I my brother's keeper? Apparently yes, since the day you were born. Happy birthday. The pebbles are still in my pocket."
- To a sister, after a quarrel: "Marmee had it right: forgive each other, help each other, begin again tomorrow. I'm starting with the first one. Coffee Saturday?"
- To a sibling far away: "Austen said a good letter is just talking on paper, so: I miss you, the dog misses you, and nobody here laughs at my jokes."
Two rules make these work. Put the private detail first and the quote second, so the line lands as an echo rather than a greeting-card opener. And credit the writer in brackets if the quote is famous, since a sibling who has read Little Women will notice anyway. For cousins, the same approach works with the lines on our cousin quotes and messages page.
Why the Old List Is Gone
An earlier version of this page carried 20 different lines, and most could not be traced to a page anyone could read. One writer, "Clara Ortega," credited for a 1999 book called Family Lines, does not appear in any catalogue we searched. Another entry was labelled "Inspired by" a book, which means it was a paraphrase, not a quotation.
The rest were lines widely shared online under the names of Susan Scarf Merrell, Elizabeth Fishel, Betsy Cohen, Marian Sandmaier, Marion C. Garretty, James Patterson, Esther Friesner, Marc Brown, Pam Brown, Anna Quindlen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Benjamin Disraeli, Carol Saline, Robert Brault, Catherine Pulsifer and Gregg Levoy. Some may well be genuine. We could not match the exact wording to the book or interview given, so they are off the page until we can. Our page of misattributed family quotes explains how we check lines like these.
Quick Answers
What is a good short quote for a sibling?
For a sister or a whole set of siblings, Beth's "We've got Father and Mother, and each other" from Little Women (1868) is eight words and hard to beat. For a brother, "Am I my brother's keeper?" (Genesis 4:9) is five words, and most people now read it as a yes.
Where does "Am I my brother's keeper?" come from?
It is Cain's reply in Genesis 4:9 when God asks where his brother Abel is, after Cain has killed him. In the original it is an evasion, but it is now usually quoted to mean that siblings are responsible for each other.
What should I write in a short message to my brother or sister?
Start with one detail only the two of you share, add one short line that fits the moment, and finish with a plan or a joke. Jane Austen's rule from her 1801 letter to her sister Cassandra still works: write exactly what you would say out loud.