Faulkner did criticize Hemingway’s vocabulary in an April 1947 classroom discussion. The transcript published in The Western Review in 1951 has a longer sentence about checking a dictionary to see whether a word is properly used; the displayed sentence is a compressed variant.
“He has never been known to use a word that might send the reader to the dictionary” Compressed variant of William Faulkner’s 1947 remarks about Hemingway, published in The Western Review (1951); not the transcript’s exact sentence. · Verbatim: “He has never been known to use a word that might cause the reader to check with a dictionary…”
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In context
Evoking the themes of work, creativity and knowledge. Theme: "He has never been known to use a word that might send the reader to the dictionary". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.
Minimalist
Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "He has never been known to use a word that might send the reader to the dictionary". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.
Provenance
The source
Occasion
University of Mississippi classroom discussion, April 1947
Publication
The Western Review, Summer 1951
Comparison
Short excerpt of the longer transcribed sentence; ending omitted
He has never been known to use a word that might cause the reader to check with a dictionary…
The documented English remarks were published in 1951 and are treated as in copyright. The brief excerpt is for textual comparison and criticism; it does not reproduce the interview as a whole.
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Fact-check
The wording changed
This is a real Faulkner criticism, expressed differently in the source.
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Wording comparison: William Faulkner
QI’s transcript ↗ uses a longer construction about checking whether a word is properly used.
✓Keep Faulkner’s credit, but identify the short displayed sentence as a compressed version.
Context
Why it mattered
Asked to rank contemporary writers, Faulkner put Hemingway fourth and criticized his willingness to take risks with language. The dictionary remark was part of that ranking, rather than a free-standing definition of good prose; later accounts often turn it into a tidier personal insult.
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Filed under
More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.
William Faulkner made his native Mississippi the setting for much of his fiction, including The Sound and the Fury and As I Lay Dying. His demanding style makes the recorded contrast with Hemingway’s vocabulary especially memorable, but its rhetorical force has also encouraged compression in later retellings.
For writers & researchers
Cite this
The primary source (Chicago)
Faulkner, William. Classroom discussion, University of Mississippi, April 1947. Published in The Western Review, Summer 1951. Transcript and chronology reproduced in Quote Investigator, January 26, 2016; original issue not independently inspected.
This verification page
Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘He has never been known to use a word that might send the reader to the dictionary’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/he-has-never-been-known-to-use-a-word-that-might-send-the/