Love is a universal language that transcends time, culture, and geography. It’s a feeling that can be expressed in countless ways, but one of the most beautiful and timeless ways is through poetry. Love poems have been written for centuries, and they continue to be a popular way to express love, affection, and devotion.
In this blog, we’ll explore some of the best love poems for every occasion. Whether you’re looking for a romantic poem to express your feelings to your partner, a sweet poem to celebrate a special anniversary, or a heartfelt poem to comfort a loved one, we’ve got you covered.
Romantic Love Poems
Romantic love poems are perfect for expressing your feelings to your partner. They’re a great way to show your love and affection, and to make your partner feel special.
Here are a few examples of romantic love poems:
- Sonnet 18″ by William Shakespeare : This classic poem is one of the most famous love poems of all time. It compares the beloved to a summer’s day, and argues that the beloved is even more beautiful and lovely.
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date;
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
- How Do I Love Thee? by Elizabeth Barrett Browning : This poem is a beautiful expression of love and devotion. It asks the question “How do I love thee?” and answers it with a list of ways in which the speaker loves the beloved.
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
- The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot : This modernist masterpiece is a stream-of-consciousness poem that explores the inner thoughts and feelings of the speaker as he navigates a romantic relationship.
Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question ...
Oh, do not ask, “What is it?”
Let us go and make our visit.
In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.
The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,
Slipped by the terrace, made a sudden leap,
And seeing that it was a soft October night,
Curled once about the house, and fell asleep.
And indeed there will be time
For the yellow smoke that slides along the street,
Rubbing its back upon the window-panes;
There will be time, there will be time
To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet;
There will be time to murder and create,
And time for all the works and days of hands
That lift and drop a question on your plate;
Time for you and time for me,
And time yet for a hundred indecisions,
And for a hundred visions and revisions,
Before the taking of a toast and tea.
In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.
And indeed there will be time
To wonder, “Do I dare?” and, “Do I dare?”
Time to turn back and descend the stair,
With a bald spot in the middle of my hair —
(They will say: “How his hair is growing thin!”)
My morning coat, my collar mounting firmly to the chin,
My necktie rich and modest, but asserted by a simple pin —
(They will say: “But how his arms and legs are thin!”)
Do I dare
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.
For I have known them all already, known them all:
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;
I know the voices dying with a dying fall
Beneath the music from a farther room.
So how should I presume?
And I have known the eyes already, known them all—
The eyes that fix you in a formulated phrase,
And when I am formulated, sprawling on a pin,
When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall,
Then how should I begin
To spit out all the butt-ends of my days and ways?
And how should I presume?
And I have known the arms already, known them all—
Arms that are braceleted and white and bare
(But in the lamplight, downed with light brown hair!)
Is it perfume from a dress
That makes me so digress?
Arms that lie along a table, or wrap about a shawl.
And should I then presume?
And how should I begin?
Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows? ...
I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.
And the afternoon, the evening, sleeps so peacefully!
Smoothed by long fingers,
Asleep ... tired ... or it malingers,
Stretched on the floor, here beside you and me.
Should I, after tea and cakes and ices,
Have the strength to force the moment to its crisis?
But though I have wept and fasted, wept and prayed,
Though I have seen my head (grown slightly bald) brought in upon a platter,
I am no prophet — and here’s no great matter;
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid.
And would it have been worth it, after all,
After the cups, the marmalade, the tea,
Among the porcelain, among some talk of you and me,
Would it have been worth while,
To have bitten off the matter with a smile,
To have squeezed the universe into a ball
To roll it towards some overwhelming question,
To say: “I am Lazarus, come from the dead,
Come back to tell you all, I shall tell you all”—
If one, settling a pillow by her head
Should say: “That is not what I meant at all;
That is not it, at all.”
And would it have been worth it, after all,
Would it have been worth while,
After the sunsets and the dooryards and the sprinkled streets,
After the novels, after the teacups, after the skirts that trail along the floor—
And this, and so much more?—
It is impossible to say just what I mean!
But as if a magic lantern threw the nerves in patterns on a screen:
Would it have been worth while
If one, settling a pillow or throwing off a shawl,
And turning toward the window, should say:
“That is not it at all,
That is not what I meant, at all.”
No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,
Advise the prince; no doubt, an easy tool,
Deferential, glad to be of use,
Politic, cautious, and meticulous;
Full of high sentence, but a bit obtuse;
At times, indeed, almost ridiculous—
Almost, at times, the Fool.
I grow old ... I grow old ...
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.
Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.
I do not think that they will sing to me.
I have seen them riding seaward on the waves
Combing the white hair of the waves blown back
When the wind blows the water white and black.
We have lingered in the chambers of the sea
By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown
Till human voices wake us, and we drown.
Anniversary Love Poems
Anniversary love poems are perfect for celebrating a special milestone in your relationship. They’re a great way to express your love and gratitude, and to look back on the memories you’ve shared together. Here are a few examples of anniversary love poems:
- To My Dear and Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet : This poem is a beautiful expression of love and devotion. It celebrates the joys of married life, and expresses the speaker’s gratitude for her husband’s love and support.
If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were loved by wife, then thee.
If ever wife was happy in a man,
Compare with me, ye women, if you can.
I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold,
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such that rivers cannot quench,
Nor ought but love from thee give recompense.
Thy love is such I can no way repay;
The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray.
Then while we live, in love let’s so persever,
That when we live no more, we may live ever.
- The Anniversary by John Donne : This poem is a metaphysical exploration of the nature of love and relationships. It celebrates the anniversary of the speaker’s relationship, and reflects on the ways in which love can transcend time and space.
All Kings, and all their favourites,
All glory of honours, beauties, wits,
The sun itself, which makes times, as they pass,
Is elder by a year now than it was
When thou and I first one another saw:
All other things to their destruction draw,
Only our love hath no decay;
This no tomorrow hath, nor yesterday,
Running it never runs from us away,
But truly keeps his first, last, everlasting day.
Two graves must hide thine and my corse;
If one might, death were no divorce.
Alas, as well as other Princes, we
(Who Prince enough in one another be)
Must leave at last in death these eyes and ears,
Oft fed with true oaths, and with sweet salt tears;
But souls where nothing dwells but love
(All other thoughts being inmates) then shall prove
This, or a love increasèd there above,
When bodies to their graves, souls from their graves remove.
And then we shall be throughly blessed;
But we no more than all the rest.
Here upon earth we’re Kings, and none but we
Can be such Kings, nor of such subjects be;
Who is so safe as we? where none can do
Treason to us, except one of us two.
True and false fears let us refrain,
Let us love nobly, and live, and add again
Years and years unto years, till we attain
To write threescore: this is the second of our reign.
- Love’s Philosophy by Percy Bysshe Shelley: This poem is a beautiful expression of the power of love to transform and transcend our lives. It celebrates the anniversary of the speaker’s relationship, and reflects on the ways in which love can bring us closer to ourselves and to each other.
The fountains mingle with the river
And the rivers with the ocean,
The winds of heaven mix for ever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle.
Why not I with thine?—
See the mountains kiss high heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdained its brother;
And the sunlight clasps the earth
And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth
If thou kiss not me?
Love Poems for Long-Distance Relationships
Love poems for long-distance relationships are perfect for expressing your love and devotion to your partner when you’re apart. They’re a great way to stay connected and to show your love and support, even from a distance. Here are a few examples of love poems for long-distance relationships:
A Long Distance Love!
Enough to satisfy my craving heart’s plea,
Tomorrow will be the day I love you more,
Than today or yesterday or ever before,
Words and phrases will never do,
What my heart feels so deeply for you,
Deeper and deeper my feelings go,
My head is spinning to and fro,
I want you here, forever and more,
For our hearts to join and together explore,
Our hearts beat and beat as one,
Feel what I’m feeling, it’s only begun,
Yet, slowly my desire turns to rage,
My heart feels as though it’s within a cage,
You are so close yet so far,
At times like this I wish upon a star,
I wish you were here and not over there,
Yet life is hard as well as unfair,
All I can do is wish and wait,
Until we meet again as that is our fate,
I love you more than my words can say,
And forever my love will grow each passing day,
Until the day I gently hold your face,
Kiss your lips within a candle lit place,
Hold you close and feel you near,
Kiss your cheek and whisper among your ear,
Feel your soft skin beneath my hand,
Feel your energy inside expand,
I’ll wish for that moment as I always do,
And I’ve wished upon a star, so my wish will come true.
– Jessica Andress
Love Poems for Break-Ups
Love poems for break-ups are perfect for expressing your emotions and processing your feelings after a relationship ends. They’re a great way to reflect on the past, and to look forward to the future. Here are a few examples of love poems for break-ups
- The Break-Up by Philip Larkin: This poem is a beautiful and poignant exploration of the end of a relationship. It celebrates the speaker’s love for his partner, and reflects on the ways in which the relationship has come to an end.
- After the Break-Up by Sharon Olds: This poem is a powerful and intense expression of the emotions that follow a break-up. It celebrates the speaker’s love for her partner, and reflects on the ways in which the relationship has changed her.
- The Good-Morrow” by John Donne: This poem is a metaphysical exploration of the nature of love and relationships. It celebrates the speaker’s love for his partner, and reflects on the ways in which the relationship has come to an end.
I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I
Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?
But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?
Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?
’Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.
If ever any beauty I did see,
Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee.
And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
Which watch not one another out of fear;
For love, all love of other sights controls,
And makes one little room an everywhere.
Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,
Let maps to other, worlds on worlds have shown,
Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one.
My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,
And true plain hearts do in the faces rest;
Where can we find two better hemispheres,
Without sharp north, without declining west?
Whatever dies, was not mixed equally;
If our two loves be one, or, thou and I
Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die.
Love Poems for Friends
Love poems for friends are perfect for expressing your appreciation and affection for your friends. They’re a great way to celebrate the special bond that you share with your friends, show your love and appreciation for the special people in your life. Here are a few examples of love poems for friends:
- A Song for Friends by Ralph Waldo Emerson: This poem is a beautiful expression of the joy and beauty of friendship. It celebrates the special bond that friends share, and reflects on the ways in which friendship can bring us closer to ourselves and to each other.
- The Friend by Christina Rossetti: This poem is a poignant and introspective exploration of the nature of friendship. It celebrates the speaker’s love and appreciation for her friend, and reflects on the ways in which friendship can provide comfort and solace in times of need.
- To a Friend by Walt Whitman: This poem is a beautiful and celebratory expression of the joy and beauty of friendship. It celebrates the special bond that friends share, and reflects on the ways in which friendship can bring us closer to ourselves and to each other.
Love Poems for Family
Love poems for family are perfect for expressing your love and appreciation for your family members. They’re a great way to celebrate the special bond that you share with your family, and to show your love and gratitude for the people who matter most in your life. Here are a few examples of love poems for family:
- To My Mother by Edgar Allan Poem: This poem is a beautiful and poignant expression of the speaker’s love and appreciation for his mother. It celebrates the special bond that they share, and reflects on the ways in which his mother’s love and support have shaped his life.
- The Family” by Robert Frost : This poem is a beautiful and introspective exploration of the nature of family. It celebrates the special bond that family members share, and reflects on the ways in which family can provide comfort, support, and a sense of belonging.
- To My Father by Dylan Thomas: This poem is a powerful and emotional expression of the speaker’s love and appreciation for his father. It celebrates the special bond that they share, and reflects on the ways in which his father’s love and influence have shaped his life.
Love Poems for Special Occasions
Love poems for special occasions are perfect for expressing your love and appreciation on special days like anniversaries, birthdays, and weddings. They’re a great way to celebrate the special bond that you share with your loved one, and to show your love and gratitude for the special person in your life. Here are a few examples of love poems for special occasions:
- Anniversary by Robert Browning: This poem is a beautiful and romantic expression of the speaker’s love and appreciation for his partner on their anniversary. It celebrates the special bond that they share, and reflects on the ways in which their love has grown and evolved over time.
- Birthday by Christina Rossetti: This poem is a poignant and introspective exploration of the nature of love and relationships on a birthday. It celebrates the special bond that the speaker shares with her loved one, and reflects on the ways in which their love has brought joy and happiness into her life.
- Wedding by Edmund Spenser: This poem is a beautiful and celebratory expression of the joy and happiness of a wedding day. It celebrates the special bond that the bride and groom share, and reflects on the ways in which their love will bring them happiness and fulfillment in the years to come.
For Readers
Love poems are a beautiful and powerful way to express your love and appreciation for the special people in your life. Whether you’re looking for a romantic poem to express your feelings to your partner, a sweet poem to celebrate a special anniversary, or a heartfelt poem to comfort a loved one, there’s a love poem out there for you. We hope that this collection of love poems has inspired you to express your love and appreciation in a beautiful and meaningful way.