We must speak as the common people; we must think as the learned.

Explanation

Words in a statute or instrument are taken in their ordinary, popular sense — the language of the People — but the reasoning applied to them must be precise and learned.

Where this applies

• Legal terms should be understood the way ordinary people understand them.
• The law speaks in the language of the common people even though its reasoning is learned.
• Words in a statute are given their everyday meaning, not their academic definition.