Skip to Content

120 How Time Flies Quotes To Seize Life’s Fleeting Beauty

120 How Time Flies Quotes To Seize Life’s Fleeting Beauty

No matter how much we yearn to stretch the fleeting moments of precious time, they slip through our fingers like sand. 

We cannot keep them, we cannot hold on to them. All we can do is enjoy them before they disappear.

Below you’ll discover an extensive list of how time flies quotes that grapple with the perplexing nature of time.

Let these wise words from some of the world’s greatest minds help you savor each and every moment in your life!

10 Greatest How Time Flies Quotes

1. “Time flies. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.” ― Alice Morse Earle

a pocket watch in beach sand representing the greatest how time flies quote

 2.“Time flies when you are having fun.” — Albert Einstein

3. “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” — Michael Altshuler

4. “Time flies so fast because it does not have any guidance. Like the moon in its zenith or the horizon.” — Albert Camus

5. “Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.” — Earl Nightingale

a pocket watch half buried in sand representing the greatest how time flies quote

6. “Time flies. It’s up to you to be the navigator.” — Robert Orben

7. “Life is not just the passing of time. Life is the collection of experiences and their intensity.” — Jim Rohn

8. “Time goes, you say? Ah, no! Alas, time stays, we go.” — Henry Austin Dobson

9. “Life is flying by. You don’t have time to waste another minute being negative, offended, or bitter. If someone did you wrong, get over it and move forward.” — Joel Osteen

10. “One day, you will wake up and there won’t be any more time to do the thing you’ve always wanted. Do it now.” — Paulo Coelho

a pocket watch in the sand during sunset

Inspirational Quotes About Time Passing

1. “Time flies, but it never goes backwards. Make the most of every moment.” ― Steve Jobs

a pocket watch in a man's hand representing inspirational quote about time flying

2. “Time flies, and what is past is done.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

3. “When you’re engaged in what you love to do, it’s like driving in the fast lane. Time flies by and more roads open up to you, alternate routes you may not have even known existed.” — T. Harv Eker

4. “Enjoy the now. Time flies, enjoy it while you can.” — Eddie Jemison

5. “There is so little time for us all; I need to be able to say what I want quickly and to as many people as possible.” — Marc Bolan

a man's hand holding a pocket watch

6. “If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.” — Bruce Lee

7. “Sadness flies away on the wings of time.” — Unknown

8. “Time flies but memories remain etched in mind and heart forever.” — Unknown

9. “Don’t use time and words carelessly neither can be retrieved.” — Lecrae

10. “Time whizzes by when you have children. They make you aware of the passing of time, but also help keep you young.” — Jaclyn Smith

a man's hand holding a pocket watch on the beach

11. “Time always has a way of showing what is important to us. A smile, a hug, gentle words of I miss you, I love you. Do not let time pass by without expressing how you really feel. Moments do not stay here forever, They fly away like the wind.” — Mimi Novic

12. “Make good use of your time, it flies fast.” — Unknown

13. “The more sand has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it.” — Niccolo Machiavelli

14. “Time limits, make each moment count.” — Martin Uzochukwu Ugwu

15. “Life goes by in the blink of an eye. So be sure to appreciate the many moments with family and friends that make your life complete.” — Unknown

a pocket watch held in a hand on the beach

16. “During the past five years, I’ve learned that time flies faster than you think, and because you only live once you have to learn from your mistakes, live your dreams, and be accountable.” — Lindsay Lohan

17. “Time flies, but it’s up to us to make the most of it.” ― Mark Twain

18. “Make use of time, let not advantage slip.” — William Shakespeare

19. “Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.” — Earl Nightingale

20. “Life is short. Time is fast. No replay. No rewind. So enjoy every moment as it comes.” — Unknown

a pocket watch in hand during sunset on the beach

21. “Time is free, but it’s priceless. You can’t own it, but you can use it. You can’t keep it, but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it you can never get it back.” — Harvey Mackay

22. “Time flies when you’re changing the world.” — Craig Kielburger

23. “Time is a brisk wind, for each hour it brings something new.” — Paracelsus

24. “Hurry up your dreams are waiting for you, but they will not wait forever.” — Paulo Coelho

25. “Time flies, but it can also be a reminder of how much we’ve grown and changed.” ― Ellen DeGeneres

a human hand holding an old pocket watch on the beach

26. “If you don’t value your time, no one else will.” — Donna Brazile

27. “Every second is of infinite value.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

28. “Enjoy the moment. You won’t have it again.” ― Frank Sonnenberg

29. “Most of us take for granted that time flies, meaning that it passes too quickly. But in the mindful state, time doesn’t really pass at all. There is only a single instant of time that keeps renewing itself over and over with infinite variety.” — Deepak Chopra

30. “Time flies so fast but gives us millions of memories to remember that time.” — Unknown

a pocket watch in the hand of a man representing inspirational time flies so fast quote

Thought-Provoking How Time Flies Quotes

1. “Unfortunately, the clock is ticking, the hours are going by. The past increases, the future recedes. Possibilities decreasing, regrets mounting.” — Haruki Murakami

a golden sand watch standing on the beach sand

2. “Time flies. Time flies faster every year. Time flies whether you’re having fun or not, whether you’re living your life big or small, whether you surround yourself with fear or laughter.” — Claire Cook

3. “Time and tide wait for no man.” — Geoffrey Chaucer

4. “Time brings all things to pass.” — Aeschylus

5. “We have been conditioned to see the passing of time as an adversary.” — Menachem Mendel Schneerson

an antique sand watch

6. “Growing up happens in a heartbeat. One day you’re in diapers; the next day you’re gone. But the memories of childhood stay with you for the long haul.” — The Wonder Years

7. “When you get a groove going, time flies.” — Donald Fagen

8. “Time flies so fast for those who can’t fly.” ― Tamerlan Kuzgov

9. “One day, you’re 17 and you’re planning for someday. And then quietly, without you ever really noticing, someday is today. And then someday is yesterday. And this is your life.” — Brooke Davies

10. “The most beautiful moments always seemed to accelerate and slip beyond one’s grasp just when you want to hold onto them for as long as possible.” — E.A. Bucchianeri

an hourglass sand timer

11. “It’s pretty scary to know how quickly time flies.” — James Wan

12. “There is never enough time to enjoy what you love.” — Joyce Rachelle

13. “Time meanwhile is flying, flying beyond recall.” — Virgil

14. “Doesn’t it scare you sometimes how time flies and nothing changes?” — Ika Natassa

15. “Time flies over us, but it leaves its shadow behind.” — Nathaniel Hawthrone

a golden hourglass sand timer representing thought-provoking time flies by so fast quote

16. “As the wave is driven by wave, and each, pursued, pursues the wave ahead, so time flies on and follows, flies, and follows, always, forever and new. What was before is left behind; what never was is now, and every passing moment is renewed.” ― Ovid

17. “But meanwhile, time flies; it flies never to be regained.” — Virgil

18. “Time flies, it’s true. But what kind of wings does it have, butterfly wings, bat wings, or eagle wings? None. It has the wings of a duck, which is why I’m surprised nobody in history has noticed that time also swims.” ― Jarod Kintz

19. “Time flies, but it leaves its mark.” ― Oprah Winfrey

20. “We are aboard inside time, as it flies and never wear out.” — Ronnie Cornelisz

a sand watch at the beach

21. “Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.” — Will Rogers

22. “Time flies when you are on an emotional roller coaster.” ― Kaitlyn Bristowe

23. “It’s almost mind-boggling how time flies.” — Martin Brodeur

24. “You may delay, but time will not.” — Benjamin Franklin

25. “It is impossible for me to remember how many days or weeks went by in this way. Time is round, and it rolls quickly.” — Nikos Kazantzakis

a golden sand watch on the beach

26. “It’s strange how time can make a place shrink, make its strangeness ordinary.” — Veronica Roth

27. “Time flies so fast even death seems to be surprised.” — Unknown

28. “I think the worst sort of time travel is how the clock speeds up when I’m on my break.” ― Joyce Rachelle

29. “The future is uncertain, but the end is always near.” — Jim Morrison

30. “Time is passing: not leaden stepping but sprinting on winged feet, quick silver slipping by.” ― Richard L. Ratliff

a sand watch in a golden base

Insightful How Time Flies Quotes

1. “You can not sit on the hands of time and stop it from ticking. It will keep ticking with or without you.” — Christine E. Szymanski

a silver pocket watch in the sand

2. “The trouble is you think you have time.” — Gautama Buddha

3. “Time flies when you’re busy, but it moves slowly when you’re bored.” ― Richard Branson

4. “Time, as he grows old, teaches many lessons.” — Aeschylus

5. “Yes, time flies. And where did it leave you? Old too soon…smart too late.” — Mike Tyson

a pocket watch buried in the sand representing an insightful time flies so fast quote

6. “Time moves slowly but passes quickly.” — Alice Walker

7. “While we are postponing, life speeds by.” — Seneca the Younger

8. “Those who possess time are often not aware of their value.” — Sunday Adelaja

9. “Our time in this life is limited. And how we respect that time will create a greater possibility for fulfillment.” — Ruben Papian

10. “Those who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain of its brevity.” — Jean de La Bruyère

a pocket watch buried in beach sand

11. “They say time flies, but you keep breaking its wings.” — Tablo

12. “Everything will eventually come to an end. So try to savor the moment, cause time flies, don’t it? The beauty of life, you gotta make it last for the better, cause nothin’ lasts forever.” — Nas

13. “Time flies, but not memories.” ― Ika Natassa

14. “It’s funny how time flies by. We met, we dated, got engaged, and now we are married. It’s so fast.” — Tam Ross

15. “Time flies when you’re having fun, but it drags on when you’re not.” ― Jim Carrey

a round pocket watch in beach sand representing an insightful time goes fast quote

16. “Time flies when you’re running out of money.” — James Cook

17. “Time flies sometimes like a bird, sometimes crawls like a worm, but a man feels particularly well when he does not even notice that the time flies away.” — Ivan Turgenev

18. “Time flies, whether you’re wasting it or not.” — Crystal Woods

19. “Time flies in space — we would faintly believe that everything flies forward with it.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

20. “Time flies and draws us with it. The moment in which I am speaking is already far from me.” — Nicolas Boileau-Despreaux

an old pocket watch in the sand

21. “How time flies when you’re doin’ all the talking.” — Harvey Fierstein

22. “No, the point is not only does time fly and do we die, but that in these reckless conditions we live at all, and are vouchsafed, for the duration of certain inexplicable moments, to know it.” — Annie Dillard

23. “There are no refunds on misspent time.” — Jack Butcher

24. “Has it ever struck you… that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quickly you hardly catch it going? It’s really all memory… except for each passing moment.” — Eric Kandel

25. “Short as life is, we make it still shorter by the careless waste of time.” — Victor Hugo

an antique pocket watch buried in beach sand

26. “Time flies on restless pinions — constant never.” — Friedrich Schiller

27. “If time flies when you’re having fun, it hits the afterburners when you don’t think you’re having enough.” — Jef Mallett

28. “Time flies when you’re in the place you’re meant to be.” — Unknown

29. “The time flies. The time flies feed on rotting clocks.” — Craig Clevenger

30. “They say I’m old-fashioned and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast!” — Dr. Seuss

A silver pocket watch with chain laying in the sand..

Nostalgic Quotes About Time Going Fast

1. “I wish I could freeze time or go back in time and watch my kids grow up all over again because it is just going by too fast.” — Robert Rodriguez

a pocket watch and sand in a human's hand representing nostalgic time goes by fast quote

2. “And time flies just like melting ice!” ― Nikhil Bhatia

3. “We have had a good time while we were young, but it is in the nature of time to fly.” ― T.H. White

4. “The mists of nostalgia color memory.” — Ken Tucker

5. “The velocity with which time flies is infinite, as is most apparent to those who look back.” — Seneca the Younger

sand flowing between fingers of a hand holding a pocket watch

6. “It’s crazy how fast time flies and how things progress.” ― Nathan Chen

7. “People always talk about how time flies; it’s become a sort of a colloquialism now. You don’t really understand it until you reach your late 30s and early 40s — and I’m sure time will move even faster as I get older.” ― Ben Gibbard

8. “Before you know it it’s 3 am and you’re 80 years old and you can’t remember what it was like to have 20-year-old thoughts or a 10-year-old heart.” — Anita Pallenberg

9. “And therein lies the whole of man’s plight. Human time does not turn in a circle; it runs in a straight line. That is why man cannot be happy: happiness is the longing for repetition.” — Milan Kundera

10. “Memory is a stopgap for humans, for whom time flies and what is passed is passed.” — Umberto Eco

sand flowing from a person's hand holding an old pocket watch

11. “Time flies, memories fade, and people change, but deep down it still hurts.” — Unknown

12. “It is impossible for me to remember how many days or weeks went by in this way. Time is round, and it rolls quickly.” — Nikos Kazantzakis

13. “I blinked my eyes and in an instant, decades had passed.” ― John Mark Green

14. “time flies so fast. day by day left us. with or without smiles, the new days will comes.” ― Nunki Artura

15. “How did it get so late so soon? It’s night before it’s afternoon. December before it’s June. My goodness, how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?” — Dr. Seuss

a hand holding sand and an antique pocket watch

16. “Maybe that’s what life is… a wink of the eye and winking stars.” — Jack Kerouac

17. “Life is short and the older you get, the more you feel it. Indeed, the shorter it is. People lose their capacity to walk, run, travel, think, and experience life. I realize how important it is to use the time I have.” — Viggo Mortensen

18. “Time flies, but memories last forever.” ― Helen Mirren

19. “No matter how much time passes, no matter what takes place in the interim, there are some things we can never assign to oblivion, memories we can never rub away.” — Haruki Murakami

20. “Every passing moment is the passing of life; every moment of life is life itself.” — Lisa See

a hand with pocket watch and sand flowing from it

Summing Up

I gave my best to collect only the best how time flies quotes available on the web. 

Let it serve you as a reminder to treasure the fleeting moments of your life!

120 How Time Flies Quotes To Seize Life's Fleeting Beauty