Marriage will never be easy. It’s not meant to be. You have to work at it together and form a solid partnership that can stand the test of time.
Your husband may annoy you, he may ignore you from time to time or even shout at you, and you could think about ending things multiple times throughout your marriage.
But even though it’ll never be the simplest thing to get through, there are ways to make your marriage easier.
These marriage quotes can help you realize what you truly have and also aid in your journey as a couple. Remember them and you’ll have an easier time maneuvering through life with your man.
Table of Contents
1. “It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages” ― Friedrich Nietzsche
You can’t just marry someone you think is attractive. You should be looking for a good man. This quote is talking about the foundation of a good marriage being friendship. If you have that, you can make it work.
2. “A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person” – Mignon McLaughlin
It’s not enough to just be in love. You always have to be working on falling in love over and over again with your partner. Putting forth the same amount of effort every single day as you did in the beginning will help your relationship.
3. “The secret of a happy marriage is finding the right person. You know they’re right if you love to be with them all the time” – Julia Child
If your relationship is struggling, perhaps you didn’t find the right person. Sure, your partner can get annoying from time to time but if you’d rather do life with them than without, there’s still hope for your marriage.
4. “Marriage is not a noun; it’s a verb. It isn’t something you get. It’s something you do. It’s the way you love your partner every day” – Barbara De Angelis
Need we say more? Marriage isn’t about existing with someone you love, it’s about working toward a happy ending every single day.
5. “Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads, which sew people together through the years” – Simone Signoret
This quote means that your marriage isn’t based on being married alone. It’s the little things, the tiny threads of your everyday actions, that keep the two of you happy. Make sure you’re doing the little things.
6. “A word of encouragement from a teacher to a child can change a life. A word of encouragement from a spouse can save a marriage. A word of encouragement from a leader can inspire a person to reach her potential” – John C Maxwell
Notice how success comes from support and encouragement. The same goes for a marriage. If you support each other and encourage one another to do all the things you want, your marriage will function much better.
7. “Experts on romance say for a happy marriage there has to be more than a passionate love. For a lasting union, they insist, there must be a genuine liking for each other. Which, in my book, is a good definition for friendship” – Marilyn Monroe
This is another quote about the power of friendship in a marriage. Your partner has to be your best friend even after you’re married. Working toward this can help save your marriage and keep it happy and healthy.
8. “Many people spend more time in planning the wedding than they do in planning the marriage” – Zig Ziglar
If you act like the wedding is the most important part of your marriage, it’ll be very evident during your first year today. Plan for a happy life together because the wedding is only a single day of your lifetime together.
9. “A happy marriage is a long conversation which always seems too short” – Andre Maurois
I’m sure you’ve heard how important communication is in a relationship. And if you’ve continued to ignore it until now, stop. This quote says it all. Converse with each other and your problems can be solved.
10. “The secret of a happy marriage remains a secret” – Henny Youngman
In truth, what makes a relationship work is different depending on the couple. You have to find what works for you and that’s your personal secret. Learn how to make your marriage work together.
11. “Don’t marry the person you think you can live with; marry only the individual you think you can’t live without” – James Dobson
It’s not enough to settle for someone you think you can live with. You should make sure you’ve married the person you don’t want to go through life without.
Because even on the hard days, you’ll still be grateful for them. But don’t forget that some time apart is always good for your relationship.
12. “Marriage is an adventure, like going to war” – GK Chesterton
It’s not a little fairytale like we’re all made to believe. It’s a hard journey and when you realize that, your marriage will improve because you’ll treat it as such and take the time and effort to make it work.
13. “Ultimately, I believe the only secret to a happy marriage is choosing the right person. Life is a series of choices, right?” – Michelle Pfeiffer
You have to choose your partner wisely. And when you have chosen them, the next step is to make the right choices in keeping your marriage healthy and happy. Sometimes those choices can be difficult but, regardless, they’re necessary.
14. “When marrying, ask yourself this question: Do you believe that you will be able to converse well with this person into your old age? Everything else in marriage is transitory” – Friedrich Nietzsche
It’s all about being able to communicate. And even if you have a hard time opening up, you have to be able to with your husband. Talk to each other and your relationship can be saved.
15. “I think long-lasting, healthy relationships are more important than the idea of marriage. At the root of every successful marriage is a strong partnership” – Carson Daly
This is the basis of a great marriage: a partnership. You have to work together and work on even playing fields. The quality of your relationship is based on how well you can work together.
16. “What I’ve learned about marriage: You need to have each other’s back; you have to be a kind of team going through life” – Tom Petty
This is another quote about the importance of working together. You’re a team, not a single unit. You compromise, support each other, and have each other’s backs. Do this, and your marriage will remain healthy.
17. “Remember that creating a successful marriage is like farming: you have to start over again every morning” – H Jackson Brown Jr
Every single day is unique in a marriage. Each day requires something new but no matter what, every day needs your effort. Not only will trying every single day get you a happy marriage, it’s a quality your husband will adore in you. You work to have a happy marriage and if you do it, he’ll want to, too.
18. “I love being married. It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life” – Rita Rudner
If you want your marriage to work out, let yourself love to annoy your husband. Obviously, this is meant in a good way. Poke fun at him and remember to enjoy each other.
19. “In marriage do thou be wise: prefer the person before money, virtue before beauty, the mind before the body; then thou hast a wife, a friend, a companion, a second self” – William Penn
This quote really says it all. You can’t marry for surface-level qualities. It’s about what’s down deep.
Don’t forget those amazing qualities that you married your husband for. Recognize them and you’ll be far more appreciative.
20. “You can’t have a happy family if you don’t have a happy marriage” – Jeremy Sisto
Do you value your family or want to have a great one someday? Then you have to focus on nurturing your marriage. Allow your children to see what true love, compassion, and a healthy relationship looks like.
21. “A good marriage is one which allows for change and growth in the individuals and in the way they express their love” – Pearl S Buck
We grow and change within our marriages. You’re not the same person you were when you first got married. You both have to allow for that change and learn to love each other in every stage of life.
22. “If there is such a thing as a good marriage, it is because it resembles friendship rather than love” – Michel de Montaigne
Are you starting to notice a theme with healthy marriages? It’s about friendship. Learn to like your partner in addition to loving them because that will save your marriage more than love will.
23. “They say marriage will change you but it didn’t change me. Being in love changed me” – R Kelly
Marriage is but a single day of your life together. That alone should never change your relationship. Love is the only thing that can make or break it. Focus on that love and nurture the relationship.
24. “The great marriages are partnerships. It can’t be a great marriage without being a partnership” – Helen Mirren
You’ll never have a functioning relationship if you can’t work as a team. If one person is always calling the shots and the other is upset about them, it won’t work. Learn to work together as partners and your marriage will always be good.
25. “It’s so important to keep a marriage alive with small treats and doing little things for each other. Just remembering to say nice things and to have listening time is vital. That ghastly phrase ‘quality time’ means taking three minutes to sit down and be still with someone rather than yelling over your shoulder as you rush out” – Joanna Lumley
It’s as simple as this. Have quality time together no matter what. It’s crucial to do the little things and be affectionate even if just for a few minutes a day.
26. “Brands mature over time, like a marriage. The bond you feel with your spouse is different than when you first met each other. Excitement and discovery are replaced by comfort and depth” – Gary Vaynerchuk
This is a huge part of marriage. Your love changes within your union but that should never be a bad thing. Let the change happen and learn to appreciate and love how much your love has grown.
27. “Marriage is like twirling a baton, turning hand springs or eating with chopsticks. It looks easy until you try it” – Helen Rowland
If your relationship is suffering because you thought it would be a walk in the park, it’s time to face reality and start putting forth some effort. Wanting to make it work isn’t’ enough. You have to act like it.
28. “Never feel remorse for what you have thought about your wife; she has thought much worse things about you” – Jean Rostand
This is a single example of how a marriage isn’t perfect. You’ll go through rough times but, ultimately, if you love and care about your husband, you’ll put those things aside.
29. “To keep your marriage brimming, With love in the loving cup, Whenever you’re wrong, admit it; Whenever you’re right, shut up” – Ogden Nash
This quote is about compromise. You have to learn when to give and when to take and also when to stay out of something. If your husband still loves you and wants to work on things, own up to your mistakes and be humble when you’re in the right.
30. “It is a full time job being honest one moment at a time, remembering to love, to honor, to respect. It is a practice, a discipline, worthy of every moment” – Jasmine Guy
Marriage is work. Just as this quote says, you have to practice being in a healthy marriage. You make the marriage; the marriage won’t make you.
31. “Marriage is a commitment for life. It is a permanent, lifelong relationship” – Dada Vaswani
This quote is here to serve as a reminder. You committed to your husband and now it’s time to keep committing. Day after day, you have to try and make things work because it’s for a lifetime.
32. “All that a husband or wife really wants is to be pitied a little, praised a little, and appreciated a little” – Oliver Goldsmith
Sometimes it really is this simple. You can round this entire quote into one word: empathize. Have empathy for your partner and you’ll learn how to make your marriage last.
33. “The problem with marriage is that it ends every night after making love, and it must be rebuilt every morning before breakfast” – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
It’s difficult, is what this quote is saying. Marriage isn’t cut and dry. You go to sleep next to each other each night and make the effort to have a healthy relationship every morning.
34. “A marriage doesn’t have to be perfect, but you can be perfect for each other” – Jessica Simpson
If you’re happy together and you truly love each other, your marriage will work. It doesn’t need to be perfect and flawless. So long as you’re in it together, it will last.
35. “I think of marriage as a garden. You have to tend to it. Respect it, take care of it, feed it. Make sure everyone is getting the right amount of, um, sunlight” – Mark Ruffalo
This is just the truth. You have to care for you partner and your relationship in general. Nurture it when you have to and let it bloom when it’s time. Effort is what it takes.
36. “Marriage is like life–it is a field of battle, not a bed of roses” – Robert Louis Stevenson
This has to do with thinking marriage is this amazing thing. It’s difficult. You’ll have to fight together in order to make it work. But the victory is worth the struggle.
37. “Marriage requires a special talent, like acting. Monogamy requires genius” – Warren Beatty
Sometimes you can try all you want to make it work but without a very specific skill, teamwork, it will never function. Both of you have to be in it for the long haul and you both have to put forth the energy to make it last.
38. “Almost no one is foolish enough to imagine that he automatically deserves great success in any field of activity; yet almost everyone believes that he automatically deserves success in marriage” – Sydney J. Harris
It’s a twisted belief system we grew up with. We all think marriage will be successful as soon we sign those papers. That’s just not the case. It’s the same as any other endeavor; it only works if you continuously try.
39. “You know, real life doesn’t just suddenly resolve itself. You have to keep working at it. Democracy, marriage, friendship. You can’t just say, ‘She’s my best friend.’ That’s not a given, it’s a process” – Viggo Mortensen
Marriage is a process. That’s what this quote means. It’s something you work for, not something you’re given just by having a wedding.
40. “Never ever discount the idea of marriage. Sure, someone might tell you that marriage is just a piece of paper. Well, so is money, and what’s more life-affirming than cold, hard cash?” – Dennis Miller
There will be people who don’t have value in a marriage but there is great value, indeed. If you recognize that, you’ll work hard to preserve it.
41. “A marriage without conflicts is almost as inconceivable as a nation without crises” – Andre Maurois
Just as this quote says, marriage doesn’t work without conflict. That’s how you know you both care. You fight and you resolve it through communication and you keep trucking along.
42. “We want our marriage to be a triumph, not a tragedy” – Joyce Meyer
It’s all about having this shared idea of what your marriage should look like. If you both want a success story, you’ll both work to make that vision a reality.
43. “Marriages, like careers, need constant nurturing…the secret of having it all is loving it all” – Joyce Brothers
You can’t expect your relationship to function in a healthy way without nurturing it. Loving every aspect of the marriage is what will help you make it last.
44. “When you make the sacrifice in marriage, you’re sacrificing not to each other but to unity in a relationship” – Joseph Campbell
It’s not always about what your partner wants, but rather, what will help the relationship. You have to be willing to make sacrifices for the good of your marriage and not just so your husband gets what he wants.
45. “But marriage goes in waves. You’ve got to be patient. People bail and give up on their marriages way too early. They just don’t put the work and the effort into it. You’ve got to suck up your ego a lot of times, because that can be a big downfall” – Anna Benson
If you think your marriage will only ever be amazing and happy, it’ll fail. It’s not easy. You have to be patient and work with what you have. If you’re both happy and satisfied, your relationship will last. But don’t let your ego get the better of you and keep you from that satisfaction.
46. “Every good relationship, especially marriage, is based on respect. If it’s not based on respect, nothing that appears to be good will last very long” – Amy Grant
This quote means what it says. You have to truly respect one another in order to make it last. If you find that your husband isn’t respecting you, it’s time to make a change so your marriage can last.
47. “When I’m weak, you can be strong; when I’m strong, you can be weak. That’s what I believe marriage is” – Gisele Bundchen
It’s the teamwork being mentioned again, just more subtly. This is what a marriage is. It’s about being what your partner needs when he needs it and vice versa. Be his strength when he’s weak and he’ll be yours.
48. “The great secret of a successful marriage is to treat all disasters as incidents and none of the incidents as disasters” – Harold Nicolson
If you focus too much on the big things, they can become unfixable. If you focus too much on the little things, they can likewise become unfixable. It’s about solving what you can and getting through it together.
49. “Marriage is not just spiritual communion, it is also remembering to take out the trash” – Joyce Brothers
It’s simple: It’s the little things. If there’s one thing that can save your marriage, it’s remembering to do those little things which you don’t think are important. Because, when push comes to shove, they are.
50. “I don’t care how handsome or fabulous or funny the groom is, or how sweet and accommodating the bride, or vice versa. Marriage is hard” – Jenna McCarthy
And that’s all you really have to remember. Marriage will never be easy no matter what you do. The only thing you can do to have a healthy, happy relationship is to always work toward that goal.
Marriage isn’t something that happens and then you get to enjoy all the perks of it without the necessary work. If you put in the effort, your marriage will be happy and healthy.
Don’t wait around, marriage problems can escalate very quickly.
Communicate what’s on your mind and take action!