Who really said it
A modern rendering of a definition Aquinas quotes from Aristotle; English versions differ.
Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?
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“To love is to will the good of the other” — Thomas Aquinas, quoting Aristotle in Summa Theologiae I–II, q.26, a.4; modern English rendering · Verbatim: “To love is to wish good to someone.”
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Provenance
To love is to wish good to someone.
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Fact-check
A modern rendering of a definition Aquinas quotes from Aristotle; English versions differ.
In Summa Theologiae I–II, question 26, article 4, Aquinas introduces the definition as the Philosopher’s, citing Rhetoric II. The Vatican Catechism renders it “To love is to will the good of another.” The displayed “the other” is not the wording of either checked English source. Evidence ↗
Context
Aquinas introduces the definition by explicitly citing Aristotle. Modern English versions differ between wishing good to someone and willing the good of another, so the short familiar formulation needs both a translation qualification and an acknowledgment of the older source.
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Article four attributes the definition to the Philosopher and cites Rhetoric II.
The official English Catechism reads “To love is to will the good of another.”
A second transcription of the same Summa article permits comparison.
Background on the theologian and his Summa.
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For writers & researchers
Summa Theologiae I–II, q. 26, a. 4; definition credited there to Aristotle.
Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘To love is to will the good of the other’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/to-love-is-to-will-the-good-of-the-other/