46 Best The Big Lebowski Quotes

When you think of Jeff Bridges movies, The Big Lebowski is always one of the first films that comes to mind. Written and directed by the always hilarious Coen brothers (Joel Coen and Ethan Coen), the crime comedy is a cult classic featuring Bridges as Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski, a weed-loving hippie who gets caught up in a kidnapping plan after a case of mistaken identity. Bridges has almost never been better than The Dude, with the tight script full of hysterical Big Lebowski quotes, a white Russian or two (the drink that is), a missing rug, sudden violence, and a trippy musical scene. 

It’s not just Bridges who shines, with The Big Lebowski comprised of a compelling ensemble cast that includes John Goodman and Steve Buscemi respectively as Walter Sobchak and Donny Kerabatsos, The Dude’s bowling partners and good friends, along with the likes of Philip Seymour Hoffman, Julianne Moore, John Turturro, Tara Reid, Sam Elliot, David Thewlis, Peter Stormare, and Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. 

The Big Lebowski wasn’t a massive hit when it arrived in theatres but quickly became a big seller on DVD, helping cement the Coen brothers as generational filmmakers and giving Bridges a career resurgence. One of the best things about the movie is how quotable it is, with the dialogue some of the best the Coens have ever written. And while The Dude gets the best lines, Goodman and Turturro also come through with some extremely great quotes. 

To celebrate the greatness of this movie, both its actors and directors, here are our favorite quotes from The Big Lebowski. 

46 Best The Big Lebowski Quotes

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1. “The Dude abides.” – Jeffrey Lebowski, aka The Dude

2. “You said it, man. Nobody fucks with the Jesus.” – Jesus Quintana

3. “Fuck it, Dude. Let’s go bowling.” – Walter Sobchak

4. “That rug really tied the room together.” – The Dude

5. “Obviously you’re not a golfer.” – The Dude

6. “He’s a good man. And thorough.” – Maude Lebowski 

7. “Smokey, this is not ‘Nam. This is bowling. There are rules.” – Walter Sobchak

8. Blond Treehorn Thug: “Your name’s Lebowski, Lebowski. Your wife is Bunny.” The Dude: “My… my wi-, my wife, Bunny? Do you see a wedding ring on my finger? Does this place look like I’m fucking married? The toilet seat’s up, man!”

9. “What’s this day of rest shit? What’s this bullshit? I don’t fuckin’ care! It don’t matter to Jesus. But you’re not foolin’ me, man. You might fool the fucks in the league office, but you don’t fool Jesus. This bush league psyche-out stuff. Laughable, man – haha! I would have fucked you in the ass Saturday. I fuck you in the ass next Wednesday instead. Wooo! You got a date Wednesday, baby!” – Jesus Quintana

10. “Let me explain something to you. Um, I am not ‘Mr. Lebowski.’ You’re Mr. Lebowski. I’m the Dude, so that’s what you call me. That or, uh, His Dudeness or, uh, Duder, or El Duderino, if you’re not into the whole brevity thing.” – The Dude

11. “I am the walrus.” – Donny Kerabatsos

12. The Big Lewbowski: “What makes a man, Mr. Lebowski?” The Dude: “Dude.” The Big Lebowski: “Huh?” The Dude: “Uhh… I don’t know, sir.” The Big Lebowski: “Is it being prepared to do the right thing, whatever the cost? Isn’t that what makes a man?”

13. “Donny, you’re out of your element.” – Walter Sobchak

14. “He fixes the cable.” – The Dude

15. “Strong men also cry.” – The Big Lebowski 

16. “Let me tell you something, pendejo. You pull any of your crazy shit with us, you flash a piece out on the lanes, I’ll take it away from you, and stick it up your ass and pull the fucking trigger ’til it goes click.” – Jesus Quintana

17. “Must be exhausting.” – The Dude

18. “Smokey, you are entering a world of pain.” – Walter Sobchak

19. Walter Sobchak: “Am I wrong?” The Dude: “No, you’re not wrong.” Walter Sobchak: “Am I wrong?” The Dude: “You’re not wrong, Walter. You’re just an asshole.” Walter Sobchak: “OK then.”

20. “Fuck it, dude, let’s go bowling.” – Walter Sobchak

21. Younger Cop: “And was there anything of value in the car?” The Dude: “Oh, uh, yeah, uh… a tape deck, some Creedence tapes, and there was a, uh… uh, my briefcase.” Younger Cop: “In the briefcase?” The Dude: “Uh, uh, papers, um, just papers, uh, you know, uh, my papers, business papers.” Younger Cop: “And what do you do, sir?” The Dude: “I’m unemployed.”

22. “I had a rough night and I hate the fucking Eagles, man.” – The Dude

23. Maude Lebowski: “What do you do for recreation?” The Dude: “Oh, the usual. I bowl. Drive around. The occasional acid flashback.”

24. “Hey, I know that guy, he’s a Nihilist. Karl Hungus.” – The Dude

25. “You want a toe? I can get ya a toe. Believe me, there are ways dude, you don’t even wanna know about ‘em, believe me. Hell, I can get ya a toe by three o’clock this afternoon, with nail polish.” – Walter Sobchak

26. “Hey, careful man, there’s a beverage here.” – The Dude

27. “Nihilists! Fuck me. I mean, say what you want about the tenets of National Socialism, Dude, at least it’s an ethos.” – Walter Sobchak

28. “Yeah, well, you know, that’s just like, your opinion man.” – The Dude

29. “This is a very complicated case, Maude. You know, a lotta ins, a lotta outs, lotta what-have-yous.” – The Dude

30. Maude Lebowski: “Does the female form make you uncomfortable, Mr. Lebowski?” The Dude: “Uh, is that what this is a picture of?” Maude Lebowski: “In a sense, yes. My art has been commended as being strongly vaginal, which bothers some men. The word itself makes some men uncomfortable. Vagina.” The Dude: “Oh yeah?” Maude Lebowski: “Yes they don’t like hearing it and find it difficult to say whereas, without batting an eye, a man will refer to his dick or his rod or his Johnson.” The Dude: “Johnson?”

31. “At least I’m housebroken.” – The Dude

32. “Calm down you’re being very undude.” – Walter Sobchak

33. “Strikes and gutters, ups and downs.” – The Dude

34. “Walter, I love you, but sooner or later, you’re going to have to face the fact you’re a goddamn moron.” – The Dude

35. Maude Lebowski: “Do you like sex, Mr. Lebowski?” The Dude: “‘Scuse me?” Maude Lebowski: “Sex. The physical act of love. Coitus. Do you like it?” The Dude: “I was talking about my rug.” Maude Lebowski: “You’re not interested in sex?” The Dude: “You mean coitus?”

36. “Hey, nice Marmot.” – The Dude

37. “Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes, well, he eats you.” – The Stranger

38. “God damn you Walter! You fuckin’ asshole! Everything’s a fuckin’ travesty with you, man! And what was all that shit about Vietnam? What the fuck, has anything got to do with Vietnam? What the fuck are you talking about?” – The Dude

39. “Has the whole world gone crazy? Am I the only one around here who gives a shit about the rules? You think I’m fuckin’ around, mark it zero!” – Walter Sobchak

40. Bunny Lebowski: “I’ll suck your cock for a thousand dollars.” Brandt: “Ah hahahahaha! Wonderful woman. We’re all, we’re all very fond of her. Very free-spirited.” Bunny Lebowski: “Brandt can’t watch, though, or he has to pay a hundred.” Brandt: “Ah haha. That’s marvelous.” The Dude: “Uh, I’m just gonna go find a cash machine.”

41 “Life does not stop and start at your convenience you miserable piece of shit.” Walter Sobchak

42. Blond Treehorn Thug: “Where’s the money, Lebowski? Where’s the fucking money, shithead?” The Dude (head in the toilet): “It’s uh… uh… it’s down there somewhere, let me take another look.”

43. “You see what happens, Larry? This is what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass.” – Walter Sobchak

44. “You human… paraquat!” – The Dude

45. “She’s not my special lady, she’s my fucking lady friend. I’m just helping her conceive, man!” – The Dude

46. “Way out west, there was this fella… fella I wanna tell ya about. Fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least that was the handle his loving parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. Mr Lebowski, he called himself ‘The Dude.’ Now, ‘Dude’  that’s a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then there was a lot about the Dude that didn’t make a whole lot of sense. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that’s why I found the place so darned interestin’. They call Los Angeles the ‘City Of Angels.’” – The Stranger