Vol. 06 · Misquoted ·Speech ·257 of 348
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
They never said that.
What people say
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
What was actually said
"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." Neil Armstrong — Apollo 11 transcript, 20 July 1969
Why it stuck
Armstrong insisted for decades that he said "for a man" — the "a" makes "man" contrast with "mankind." Acoustic analysis (2006, Peter Shann Ford) supported him. The transmitted audio is ambiguous; NASA now prints both.
Without the "a," "man" and "mankind" mean the same thing and the sentence collapses.
Know another line by heart?
Play the duel and see how many you can spot. Or browse the whole shelf.