We must not begin by talking of pure ideas—vagabond thoughts that tramp the public roads without any human habitation—but must begin with men and their conversation.

The quote argues against starting philosophical inquiry from abstract, detached concepts. Instead, it urges beginning from lived human experience as expressed in social interaction and language.

It suggests that ideas gain meaning and traction through how people use them in communication and everyday life, rather than existing as self-sufficient entities independent of human practices.