I think, therefore I am

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English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Calque of French je pense, donc je suis or perhaps of Latin cōgitō, ergō sum. First written in French by René Descartes, a 17th century French philosopher, in Discourse on the Method (1637) as je pense donc je suis, which he later expressed in Latin in Principles of Philosophy (1644).

Phrase

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I think, therefore I am

  1. (philosophy) I am able to think, therefore I exist. A philosophical proof of existence based on the fact that someone capable of any form of thought necessarily exists.

Usage notes

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  • Subject to many humorous variations, such as I drink, therefore I am; I speak, therefore I am; or I shop, therefore I am.

Translations

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