“The more I read, the more I acquire, the more certain I am that I know nothing” — meaning, and did Voltaire say it?

No source in Voltaire’s writings has been found for this line. It circulates in English only, with no French original and no work named. One letter sometimes linked to it online — to Madame d’Épinay, 26 December 1760, the real source of a different line (“When it is a question of money, everybody is of the same religion”) — does not contain it.

What it means

The more you learn, the more clearly you see how much you do not know. It is the old Socratic idea that real knowledge begins with recognising your own ignorance.

Where it comes from

The quotation appears on many quote websites and social media accounts, always in English and without a reference. It is not listed among Voltaire’s sourced, disputed or misattributed sayings on Wikiquote, and we could not find it in the English Philosophical Dictionary or in searches of French texts on Wikisource. A similar French line, “Plus on a médité, plus on est en état d’affirmer qu’on ne sait rien,” is also credited to Voltaire online, again without a source.

Voltaire’s letter to Madame d’Épinay of 26 December 1760 (no. 4390 in the Garnier edition of his correspondence) is a real citation — but for a different saying, “When it is a question of money, everybody is of the same religion”; it is sometimes carried over to this one. We read that letter in full: it discusses Geneva, the Jesuits and a property dispute, and says nothing about reading or knowing nothing. The idea suits Voltaire’s sceptical temperament, but until an original is found the line should be treated as unsourced.

Questions

Did Voltaire say “the more I read, the more I know nothing”?

There is no confirmed source. The line has not been found in his works, and a letter sometimes linked to it (to Madame d’Épinay, 26 December 1760 — the source of a different saying, about money and religion) does not contain it.

What does the quote mean?

That learning shows you how much there is still to know, so the more you read, the more modest you become about your own knowledge.

Is there a French original?

None has been found. A similar French sentence, “Plus on a médité, plus on est en état d’affirmer qu’on ne sait rien,” is attributed to Voltaire online, but also without a reference.