"It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"'Where did you go to, if I may ask?' said Thorin to Gandalf as they rode along.
'To look ahead,' said he.
'And what brought you back in the nick of time?'
'Looking behind,' said he."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit)

"It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,
Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt,
It lies behind stars and under hills,
And empty holes it fills,
It comes first and follows after,
Ends life, kills laughter."
— J.R.R. Tolkien

"There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something. You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after."
— Thorin from "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien

"His rage passes description - the sort of rage that is only seen when rich folk that have more than they can enjoy suddenly lose something that they have never used before or wanted."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Then something Tookish woke up inside him, and he wished to go and see the great mountains, and hear the pine-trees and the waterfalls, and explore the caves, and wear a sword instead of a walking-stick."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Not all those who wonder are lost."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"There is more in you of good than you know, child of the kindly West. Some courage and some wisdom, blended in measure. If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Far over the misty mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away ere break of day
To seek the pale enchanted gold.

The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,
While hammers fell like ringing bells
In places deep, where dark things sleep,
In hollow halls beneath the fells.

For ancient king and elvish lord
There many a gleaming golden hoard
They shaped and wrought, and light they caught
To hide in gems on hilt of sword.

On silver necklaces they strung
The flowering stars, on crowns they hung
The dragon-fire, in twisted wire
They meshed the light of moon and sun.

Far over the misty mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away, ere break of day,
To claim our long-forgotten gold.

Goblets they carved there for themselves
And harps of gold; where no man delves
There lay they long, and many a song
Was sung unheard by men or elves.

The pines were roaring on the height,
The wind was moaning in the night.
The fire was red, it flaming spread;
The trees like torches blazed with light.

The bells were ringing in the dale
And men looked up with faces pale;
The dragon's ire more fierce than fire
Laid low their towers and houses frail.

The mountain smoked beneath the moon;
The dwarves, they heard the tramp of doom.
They fled their hall to dying fall
Beneath his feet, beneath the moon.

Far over the misty mountains grim
To dungeons deep and caverns dim
We must away, ere break of day,
To win our harps and gold from him!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"“Never laugh at live dragons, Bilbo you fool!” he said to himself, and it became a favourite saying of his later, and passed into a proverb."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Under the Mountain dark and tall
The King has come unto his hall!
His foe is dead,
the Worm of Dread,
And ever so his foes shall fall.

The sword is sharp, the spear is long,
The arrow swift, the Gate is strong;
The heart is bold that looks on gold;
The dwarves no more shall suffer wrong.

The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,
While hammers fells like ringing bells
In places deep, where dark things sleep,
In hollow halls beneath the fells.

-from The Hobbit (Dwarves Battle Song)"
— J.R.R. Tolkien

"Alive without breath,
As cold as death;
Never thirsty, ever drinking,
All in mail never clinking."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"I look East, West, North, South, and I do not see Sauron; but I see that Saruman has many descendants. We Hobbits have against them no magic weapons. Yet, my gentlehobbits, I give you this toast: To the Hobbits. May they outlast the Sarumans and see spring again in the trees."

"
— J.R.R. Tolkien

"This thing all things devours:
Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;
Gnaws iron, bites steel;
Grinds hard stones to meal;
Slays king, ruins town,
And beats high mountain down."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"He charged the ranks of the goblins of Mount Gram in the Battle of the Green Fields, and knocked their king Golfimbul's head clean off with a wooden club. It sailed a hundred yards through the air and went down a rabbit-hole, and in this way the battle was won and the game of Golf invented at the same moment."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Clap! Snap! the black crack!
Grip, grab! Pinch, nab!
And down down to Goblin-town
You go, my lad!

Clash, crash! Crush, smash!
Hammer and tongs! Knocker and gongs!
Pound, pound, far underground!
Ho, ho! my lad!

Swish, smack! Whip crack!
Batter and beat! Yammer and bleat!
Work, work! Nor dare to shirk,
While Goblins quaff, and Goblins laugh,
Round and round far underground
Below, my lad!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Third time pays for all"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: 70th Anniversary Edition: or There and Back Again)

"Roads go ever ever on,
Over rock and under tree,
By caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea;
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June,
Over grass and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon.

Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have knows."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"The road goes ever ever on,
over rock and under tree.
by caves where never sun has shown,
by streams that never find the sea."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit)

"His rage passes description--the sort of rage that is only seen when rich folk that have more than they can enjoy suddenly lose something that they have long had but have never before used or wanted."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"out of the frying pan and into the fire"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Gandalf, dwarves and Mr. Baggins! We are met together in the house of our friend and fellow conspirator, this most excellent and audacious hobbit—may the hair on his toes never fall out!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"A nice pickle they were all in now: all neatly tied up in sacks, with three angry trolls (and two with burns and bashes to remember) sitting by them, arguing whether they should roast them slowly, or mince them fine and boil them, or just sit on them one by one and squash them into jelly."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"O! Where are you going
With beards all a-wagging?
No knowing, no knowing
What brings Mister Baggins,
And Balin and Dwalin
down into the valley
in June
ha! ha!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Voiceless it cries,
Wingless flutters,
Toothless bites,
Mouthless mutters."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Stand by the grey stone when the thrush knocks, and the setting sun with the last light of Durin’s Day will shine upon the key-hole."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,
Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt.
It lies behind stars and under hills,
And empty holes it fills.
It comes first and follows after,
Ends life, kills laughter."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"A box without hinges, key, or lid,
Yet golden treasure inside is hid."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Bilbo lay with his eyes shut, gasping an taking pleasure in the feel of the fresh air again, and hardly noticing the excitement of the dwarves, or how they praised him and patted him on the back and put themseves and all their families for generations to come at his service."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit)

"Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"There are no safe paths in this part of the world. Remember you are over the Edge of the Wild now, and in for all sorts of fun wherever you go."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Bilbo almost stopped breathing, and went stiff himself. He was desperate. He must get away, out of this horrible darkness, while he had any strength left. He must fight. He must stab the foul thing, put its eyes out, kill it. It meant to kill him. No, not a fair fight. He was invisible now. Gollum had no sword. Gollum had not actually threatened to kill him, or tried yet. And he was miserable, alone, lost. A sudden understanding, a pity mixed with horror, welled up in Bilbo’s heart: a glimpse of endless unmarked days without light or hope of betterment, hard stone, cold fish, sneaking and whispering."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Thief, thief, thief! Baggins! We hates it, we hates it, we hates it forever!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"You ought not to be rude to an eagle, when you are only the size of a hobbit, and are up in hid eyrie at night!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Fifteen birds in five firtrees,
their feathers were fanned in a fiery breeze!
But, funny little birds, they had no wings!
O what shall we do with the funny little things?
Roast 'em alive, or stew them in a pot;
fry them, boil them and eat them hot?"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"The King beneath the mountains,
The King of carven stone,
The lord of silver fountains
Shall come into his own!

His crown shall be upholden,
His harp shall be restrung,
His halls shall echo golden
To songs of yore re-sung.

The woods shall wave on mountains.
And grass beneath the sun;
His wealth shall flow in fountains
And the rivers golden run.

The streams shall run in gladness,
The lakes shall shine and burn,
And sorrow fail and sadness
At the Mountain-king’s return!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Truly songs and tales fall utterly short of the reality, O Smaug the Chiefest and greatest of Calamities."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"I come from under the hill, and under the hills and over the hills my paths led. And through the air, I am he that walks unseen.

I am the clue-finder, the web-cutter, the stinging fly. I was chosen for the lucky number.

I am he that buries his friends alive and drowns them and draws them alive again from the water. I came from the end of a bag, but no bag went over me.

I am the friend of bears and the guest of eagles. I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am Barrel-rider."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"The dragon is withered,
His bones are now crumbled;
His armour is shivered,
His splendour is humbled!
Though sword shall be rusted,
And throne and crown perish
With strength that men trusted
And wealth that they cherish,
Here grass is still growing,
And leaves are yet swinging,
The white water flowing,
And elves are yet singing
Come! Tra-la-la-lally!
Come back to the valley!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Surely you don’t disbelieve the prophecies, because you had a hand in bringing them about yourself? You don’t really suppose, do you, that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck, just for your sole benefit? You are a very fine person, Mr. Baggins, and I am very fond of you; but you are only quite a little fellow in a wide world after all!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Then something Tookish woke up inside him, and he wished to go and see the great mountains, and hear the pine-trees and the waterfalls, and explore the caves, and wear a sword instead of a walking-stick."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Trolls simply detest the very sight of dwarves (uncooked)."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"They were frightfully angry. Quite apart from the stones no spider has ever liked being called Attercop, and Tomnoddy of course is insulting to anybody."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

""Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.""
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Yes....I am the one who made the jest...surely, thusly, I get it."
— Hobbit

"Burn, burn tree and fern!
Shrivel and scorch! A fizzling torch
To light the night for our delight,
Ya hey!

Bake and toast ‘em, fry and roast ‘em!
till beards blaze, and eyes glaze;
till hair smells and skins crack,
fat melts, and bones black
in cinders lie
beneath the sky!
So dwarves shall die,
and light the night for our delight,
Ya hey!
Ya-harri-hey!
Ya hoy!"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"Lazy Lob and crazy Cob
are weaving webs to wind me.
I am far more sweet than other meat,
but still they cannot find me!

Here am I, naughty little fly;
you are fat and lazy.
You cannot trap me, though you try,
in your cobwebs crazy.
"
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)

"I come from under the hill, and under the hills and over the hills my paths led. And through the air, I am he that walks unseen.
I am the clue-finder, the web-cutter, the stinging fly. I was chosen for the lucky number.
I am he that buries his friends alive and drowns them and draws them alive again from the water. I came from the end of a bag, but no bag went over me.
I am the friend of bears and the guest of eagles. I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am Barrel-rider."
— J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again)