50 sister quotes that perfectly describe your relationship

A sister can be your biggest foe and strongest ally — all within the course of an afternoon. There’s no relationship quite like it, making it difficult to explain the bond to anyone who grew up without a sister. It can be helpful to lean on the words of other famous sisters, whether real or fictional, for some of the best sister quotes.

Take Meg, Jo, Amy and Beth from “Little Women,” arguably the most famous sisters in literature. They fight to the point of Amy burning Jo’s writing, but Jo also cuts off most of her hair to earn money for the family. She notably proclaimed, “I could never love anyone as I love my sisters.”

Then there’s real-life sisters and tennis icons Serena and Venus Williams. Venus has talked about how protective she feels of Serena, saying, “I’m the big sister. I want to make sure she has everything, even if I don’t have anything. It’s hard. I love her too much. That’s what counts.” Whereas Serena has said: “She’s the toughest player I ever played in my life, and the best person I know.”

Sister quotes are great for birthday cards, just-thinking-about-you texts or even a reminder that you still love them even when they annoy you. Read on for some of the best sister quotes out there.

• “A sister can be seen as someone who is both ourselves and very much not ourselves — a special kind of double.” — Toni Morrison

• “I do not see as well without her. I do not hear as well without her. I do not feel as well without her. I would be better off without a hand or a leg than without my sister.” ― Erin Morgenstern, “The Night Circus”

• “Sisters are reliably good for two things: hating and loving.” ― Jessica Knoll, “The Favorite Sister”

• “I learned many life lessons from watching my big sister make mistakes!” — Kate Summers

• “We have our own, unspoken language — a look that makes one of us fall on the floor laughing or the slight inflection in our voice that conveys everything...Someone who sees you exactly as you are, and thinks that is enough.” — Barbara Bush

• “The best thing about having a sister was that I always had a friend.” — Cali Rae Turner

• “Nobody fights you like your own sister; nobody else knows the most vulnerable parts of you and will aim for them without mercy.” ― Jojo Moyes, “The Girl You Left Behind”

• Acquaintances were always on their best behavior, but sisters loved each other enough to say anything.” ― Lauren Weisberger, “Chasing Harry Winston”

• “You can kid the world, but not your sister.” — Charlotte Gray

• “She’s always there for me when I need her. She’s my best friend. She’s just my everything.” — Ashley Olsen

• “At this point, none of us are sure why we fight. We’re sisters. We need no good reason to fight, even though we have plenty of them.” ― Ken Wheaton, “Sweet as Cane, Salty as Tears”

• “As I grew up, one of my strongest allies has been my sister.” — Patti Smith

• “I’m happy to be with my sister. In a weird way, I spent my childhood watching her, looking up to her. It’s just wonderful.” — Jake Gyllenhaal

• “Sisters make the best friends in the world.” — Marilyn Monroe

• “That’s the best thing about little sisters: They spend so much time wishing they were elder sisters that in the end they’re far wiser than the elder ones could ever be.” ― Gemma Burgess, “A Girl Like You”

• “Having a sister is like having a best friend you can’t get rid of. You know whatever you do, they’ll still be there.” ― Amy Li

• “Don’t talk about my sister; don’t play with me about my sister. If you do, you’ll see another side of me.”—Beyoncé

• “I would kind of torture her. I was the older sister, and it was just the two of us. So I would play mental games with her.” — Emily Deschanel

• “A sister is like yourself in a different movie, a movie that stars you in a different life.” — Deborah Tannen

• “Bless you, my darling, and remember you are always in the hear — oh tucked so close there is no chance of escape — of your sister.” — Katherine Mansfield

• “No matter where we are, we’ll always share the same sky. We can always find each other in the same constellation.” ― Roshani Chokshi, “The Star-Touched Queen”

• “I could never love anyone as I love my sisters.” — Jo March, “Little Women"

• “Sister is probably the most competitive relationship within the family, but once the sisters are grown, it becomes the strongest relationship.” — Margaret Mead

• “Your sister knows everything to say to piss you off. But sisters tend to be each other’s biggest champion and also their hardest critics.” — Erin Foster

• “What are sisters for if not to point out the things the rest of the world is too polite to mention.” ― Claire Cook, “Must Love Dogs: New Leash on Life”

• “If you don’t understand how a woman could both love her sister dearly and want to wring her neck at the same time, then you were probably an only child.” ― Linda Sunshine

• “The mildest, drowsiest sister has been known to turn tiger if her sibling is in trouble.” — Clara Ortega

• “But what Mom never told me is that along the way, you find sisters, and they find you. Girls are cool that way.” ― Adriana Trigiani, “Viola in Reel Life”

• “It is strange how sisters can be saviors or strangers & sometimes a bit of both.” ― Amanda Lovelace, “The Princess Saves Herself in This One”

• “Is there anything worse than receiving pity from your little sister?” ― Louise Miller, “The Late Bloomers’ Club”

• “I’m the big sister. I want to make sure she has everything, even if I don’t have anything. It’s hard. I love her too much. That’s what counts.” — Venus Williams

• “You know full well as I do the value of sisters’ affections: There is nothing like it in this world.” ― Charlotte Brontë, “The Professor”

• “My sister and I truly are best friends.” — Solange Knowles

• “I would like more sisters, that the taking out of one, might not leave such stillness.” — Emily Dickinson

• “Sisters function as safety nets in a chaotic world simply by being there for each other.” ― Carol Saline, “Sisters”

• “You may be as different as the sun and the moon, but the same blood flows through both your hearts. You need her, as she needs you...” ― George R.R. Martin, “A Game of Thrones”

• “My sisters were the coolest people I knew, and still are. I have always aspired to be like them and know what they know. My sisters were the color and noise in my black-and-white boy world — how I pitied my friends who had brothers.” —  Rob Sheffield, “Talking to Girls About Duran Duran”

• “A sister smiles when one tells stories — for she knows where the decoration has been added.” — Chris Montaigne

• “Is solace anywhere more comforting than in the arms of a sister?” ― Alice Walker

• “I know my sister like I know my own mind / You will never find anyone as trusting or as kind.” — Angelica Schuyler, “Hamilton”

• “She’s the toughest player I ever played in my life, and the best person I know.” — Serena Williams

• “A sister is a gift to the heart, a friend to the spirit, a golden thread to the meaning of life.” ― Isadora James

• “You’re not my best friend. You’re my sister, and that’s more.” ― Jenny Han, “P.S. I Still Love You”

• “She is the mother I never had, she is the sister everybody would want. She is the friend that everybody deserves. I don’t know a better person.” — Oprah Winfrey

• ​​“There’s nobody in the world that knows me better than my sister.” — Tia Mowry

• “My sister is the one person who truly knows me, as I know her. ” — Lisa See, “Shanghai Girls”

• “My sister…is the person who keeps me in line, whether I like it or not. I trust her and also have a good, healthy fear of her.” — Katy Perry

• “My first beauty moment was when I was probably four years old. My sister and I snuck into my mom’s room and got into her makeup. We put on blush and lipstick and eyeshadow. I will always remember that day.” — Stella Maxwell

• “We didn’t want to admit it then, but we were friends. Best friends.” ― Shannon Celebi

• “A young lady’s most natural ally is her sister although sometimes our own relatives are as inscrutable to us as an antipodean.” ― Anna Godbersen, “Envy”

This article was originally published on TODAY.com