The Canterbury Tales

"The gretteste clerkes been noght the wysest men."

"Tullius seith: that “long apparailling biforn the bataille maketh short victorie.”"

"She was a prymerole, a pigges-nye For any lord to leggen in his bedde, Or yet for any good yeman to wedde."

"Yet in our asshen olde is fyr y-reke."

"Have ye nat seyn som tyme a pale face, Among a prees, of him that hath be lad Toward his deeth, wher-as him gat no grace, And swich a colour in his face hath had, Men mighte knowe his face, that was bistad, Amonges alle the faces in that route."

"Wel seyn they, that defenden every wight to assaye any thing of which he is in doute, whether he may parfourne it or no."

"Who hath no wyf, he is no cokewold."

"She was ful more blisful on to see Than is the newe pere-jonette tree."

"And broghte of mighty ale a large quart."

"This Nicholas was risen for to pisse, And thoghte he wolde amenden al the jape, He sholde kisse his ers er that he scape. And up the windowe dide he hastily, And out his ers he putteth prively Over the buttok, to the haunche-bon; And ther-with spak this clerk, this Absolon, ‘Spek, swete brid, I noot nat wher thou art.’ This Nicholas anon leet flee a fart, As greet as it had been a thonder-dent, That with the strook he was almost y-blent; And he was redy with his iren hoot, And Nicholas amidde the ers he smoot."

"At Cristemasse merie may ye daunce!"

"Sathan, that ever us waiteth to bigyle."

"This may wel be rym dogerel."

"What is bettre than gold? Jaspre. What is bettre than jaspre? Wisdom. And what is bettre than wisdom? Womman. And what is bettre than a good womman? No-thing."

"What is this world? what asketh men to have? Now with his love, now in his colde grave Allone, with-outen any companye."

"If that I misspeke or seye, Wyte it the ale of Southwerk, I yow preye."

"Men sholde wedden after hir estaat, For youthe and elde is often at debaat."

"Ful smale y-pulled were hir browes two, And tho were bent, and blake as any sloo."

"And wafres, pyping hote out of the glede."

"Jesu Crist, and Seynt Benedight, Blesse this hous from every wikked wight."

"Whan that the firste cok hath crowe, anon Up rist this joly lover Absolon, And him arrayeth gay, at point-devys. But first he cheweth greyn and lycorys, To smellen swete, er he had kembd his heer."

"This Absolon ne roghte nat a bene."

"So was hir joly whistle wel y-wet."

"Maugree thyn heed, thou most for indigence Or stele, or begge, or borwe thy despence!"

"She is mirour of alle curteisye."

"For in the sterres, clerer than is glas, Is writen, god wot, who-so coude it rede, The deeth of every man, withouten drede."

"Thou lokest as thou woldest finde an hare, For ever up-on the ground I see thee stare."

"He hadde a semely nose."

"‘By god,’ quod he, ‘for pleynly, at a word, Thy drasty ryming is nat worth a tord."

"Whan our Lord hadde creat Adam our forme-fader, he seyde in this wyse: “it is nat good to been a man allone; make we to him an help semblable to himself.”"

"And she was al his chere, as in his herte."

"As blak he lay as any cole or crowe, So was the blood y-ronnen in his face."

"‘Right as ther deyed never man,’ quod he, ‘That he ne livede in erthe in som degree, Right so ther livede never man,’ he seyde, ‘In al this world, that som tyme he ne deyde. This world nis but a thurghfare ful of wo, And we ben pilgrimes, passinge to and fro; Deeth is an ende of every worldly sore.’"

"What maketh this but Jupiter the king? The which is prince and cause of alle thing, Converting al un-to his propre welle, From which it is deryved, sooth to telle. And here-agayns no creature on lyve Of no degree availleth for to stryve. Thanne is it wisdom, as it thinketh me, To maken vertu of necessitee, And take it wel, that we may nat eschue, And namely that to us alle is due."

"This Carpenter had wedded newe a wyf Which that he lovede more than his lyf."

"Jalous he was, and heeld hir narwe in cage, For she was wilde and yong, and he was old."

"A barmclooth eek as whyt as morne milk Up-on hir lendes."

"Whyt was hir smok, and brouded al bifore And eek bihinde, on hir coler aboute, Of col-blak silk, with-inne and eek with-oute."

"And prively he caughte hir by the queynte."

"She was so propre and swete and likerous. I dar wel seyn, if she had been a mous, And he a cat, he wolde hir hente anon."

"Ful sooth is this proverbe, it is no lye, Men seyn right thus, ‘alwey the nye slye Maketh the ferre leve to be looth.’"

"And so bifel it on a Saterday, This carpenter was goon til Osenay; And hende Nicholas and Alisoun Acorded been to this conclusioun, That Nicholas shal shapen him a wyle This sely jalous housbond to bigyle."

"‘Now John,’ quod Nicholas, ‘I wol nat lye; I have y-founde in myn astrologye, As I have loked in the mone bright, That now, a Monday next, at quarter-night, Shal falle a reyn and that so wilde and wood, That half so greet was never Noës flood.’"

"Lo! which a greet thyng is affeccioun! Men may dye of imaginacioun, So depe may impressioun be take."

"I have swich love-longinge, That lyk a turtel trewe is my moorninge; I may nat ete na more than a mayde."

"Derk was the night as pich, or as the cole, And at the window out she putte hir hole, And Absolon, him fil no bet ne wers, But with his mouth he kiste hir naked ers Ful savourly, er he was war of this. Abak he sterte, and thoghte it was amis, For wel he wiste a womman hath no berd; He felte a thing al rough and long y-herd, And seyde, ‘fy! allas! what have I do?’ ‘Tehee!’ quod she, and clapte the window to; And Absolon goth forth a sory pas. ‘A berd, a berd!’ quod hende Nicholas, ‘By goddes corpus, this goth faire and weel!’"

"Thurgh thikke and thurgh thenne."

"Ye conne by argumentes make a place A myle brood of twenty foot of space."

"He wiste it was the eightetethe day Of April, that is messager to May."

"The Book of Decrees seith: “selden or with greet peyne been causes y-broght to good ende whanne they been baddely bigonne.”"