Love has always been a timeless theme in English literature, giving birth to some of the most beautiful expressions of affection and passion. This blog presents 44 romantic couplets, their Hindi meanings, interesting details about their origins, and the years they were written. Let’s explore these literary treasures. ❤️

44 Timeless Love Couplets from English Literature with Hindi Meanings | Romantic Poetry


1. “Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind,

And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.”
— William Shakespeare, 1595, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम आँखों से नहीं, बल्कि मन से देखता है,
इसीलिए प्रेम के देवता क्यूपिड को अंधा दिखाया गया है।”

Interesting Detail:
Shakespeare highlights how love transcends physical beauty and dwells in the mind and soul. Cupid’s blindness symbolizes love’s impartial nature.


2. “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 18

Hindi Meaning:
“क्या मैं तुम्हारी तुलना एक गर्मी के दिन से करूं?
तुम उससे ज्यादा सुंदर और सौम्य हो।”

Interesting Detail:
This couplet from Shakespeare’s famous sonnet is a timeless ode to a beloved, comparing their beauty to nature’s finest.


3. “Whatever our souls are made of,

His and mine are the same.”
— Emily Brontë, 1847, Wuthering Heights

Hindi Meaning:
“हमारी आत्माएँ जिस चीज़ से बनी हैं,
उसका और मेरा एक ही सार है।”

Interesting Detail:
Emily Brontë’s line symbolizes the deep, spiritual bond between the protagonists Heathcliff and Catherine.


4. “Grow old along with me!

The best is yet to be.”
— Robert Browning, 1864, Rabbi Ben Ezra

Hindi Meaning:
“मेरे साथ बूढ़े हो जाओ!
सबसे अच्छा हिस्सा अभी बाकी है।”

Interesting Detail:
This couplet reflects enduring love and optimism for the future, often quoted in romantic vows.


5. “I have waited for this opportunity for more than half a century,

To repeat to you once again my vow of eternal fidelity and everlasting love.”
— Gabriel García Márquez, 1985, Love in the Time of Cholera

Hindi Meaning:
“मैंने इस पल का इंतजार आधी सदी से ज्यादा किया है,
ताकि तुम्हें फिर से अपनी अनंत वफादारी और अमर प्रेम का वचन दे सकूं।”

Interesting Detail:
Márquez’s novel celebrates love that withstands time and challenges, epitomizing devotion and patience.


6. “You are my sun, my moon, and all my stars.”

— E. E. Cummings, 1926, Poem

Hindi Meaning:
“तुम मेरे सूरज, मेरे चाँद, और मेरे सभी सितारे हो।”

Interesting Detail:
This lyrical couplet illustrates how a beloved becomes the universe for a lover, encompassing all joy and light.


7. “If I know what love is,

It is because of you.”
— Hermann Hesse, 1951, Narcissus and Goldmund

Hindi Meaning:
“अगर मुझे पता है कि प्रेम क्या है,
तो वह तुम्हारी वजह से है।”

Interesting Detail:
Hesse’s words celebrate the transformative power of love, attributing the understanding of its essence to the beloved.


8. “Soul meets soul on lovers’ lips.”

— Percy Bysshe Shelley, 1821, Prometheus Unbound

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेमियों के होंठों पर आत्माएँ मिलती हैं।”

Interesting Detail:
Shelley’s romantic vision of love as a union of souls captures the poetic essence of intimacy and connection.


9. “The heart has its reasons,

Which reason knows not.”
— Blaise Pascal, 1670, Pensées

Hindi Meaning:
“दिल के अपने कारण होते हैं,
जो बुद्धि नहीं जानती।”

Interesting Detail:
Pascal highlights the irrational yet powerful nature of love, which defies logical explanations.


10. “Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove.”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 116

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम वह नहीं जो बदल जाए जब बदलाव हो,
या जो दूर होने पर मुड़ जाए।”

Interesting Detail:
This couplet defines love’s steadfastness, portraying it as constant despite challenges or changes.


11. “Each time you happen to me all over again.”

— Edith Wharton, 1911, The Age of Innocence

Hindi Meaning:
“हर बार तुम मुझे फिर से वैसे ही होते हो।”

Interesting Detail:
Wharton’s line reflects the rekindling of love and how it continues to evoke fresh emotions in the lover.


12. “My bounty is as boundless as the sea,

My love as deep; the more I give to thee, the more I have.”
— William Shakespeare, 1597, Romeo and Juliet

Hindi Meaning:
“मेरी उदारता समुद्र जितनी असीम है,
मेरा प्यार उतना ही गहरा; जितना मैं तुम्हें देता हूँ, उतना ही मेरे पास रहता है।”

Interesting Detail:
Spoken by Juliet, this couplet captures the infinite and self-replenishing nature of true love.


13. “I carry your heart with me (I carry it in my heart).”

— E. E. Cummings, 1952, Poem

Hindi Meaning:
“मैं तुम्हारा दिल अपने साथ रखता हूँ (मैं इसे अपने दिल में रखता हूँ)।”

Interesting Detail:
Cummings’ couplet is a simple yet profound expression of inseparable love, where two hearts merge into one.


14. “For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings,

That then I scorn to change my state with kings.”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 29

Hindi Meaning:
“तेरे मीठे प्रेम की याद इतनी दौलत लाती है,
कि तब मैं राजाओं से भी अपनी हालत बदलना नहीं चाहता।”

Interesting Detail:
Shakespeare elevates the value of love above material wealth, emphasizing its unparalleled richness.

15. “Love is like the wild rose-briar,

Friendship like the holly-tree.”
— Emily Brontë, 1846, Love and Friendship

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम जंगली गुलाब की झाड़ी की तरह है,
और दोस्ती होली के पेड़ की तरह।”

Interesting Detail:
Emily Brontë contrasts love and friendship, likening love to a fleeting beauty and friendship to enduring strength.


16. “We loved with a love that was more than love.”

— Edgar Allan Poe, 1849, Annabel Lee

Hindi Meaning:
“हमने उस प्रेम से प्रेम किया जो प्रेम से भी अधिक था।”

Interesting Detail:
Poe’s hauntingly beautiful couplet describes an eternal and transcendent love, defying even death.


17. “Love is an ever-fixed mark,

That looks on tempests and is never shaken.”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 116

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम एक अटल निशान है,
जो तूफानों को देखता है और कभी डगमगाता नहीं।”

Interesting Detail:
This line is a testament to the steadfast and enduring nature of true love, immune to life’s challenges.


18. “If all else perished, and he remained,

I should still continue to be.”
— Emily Brontë, 1847, Wuthering Heights

Hindi Meaning:
“अगर सब कुछ नष्ट हो जाए और वह बना रहे,
तो भी मैं अस्तित्व में रहूंगी।”

Interesting Detail:
Brontë portrays the all-consuming love between Heathcliff and Catherine, where the beloved becomes the essence of existence.


19. “I loved her against reason, against promise,

Against peace, against hope, against happiness, against all discouragement.”
— Charles Dickens, 1861, Great Expectations

Hindi Meaning:
“मैंने उसे तर्क, वादों, शांति, आशा, खुशी और हर हतोत्साहन के खिलाफ प्यार किया।”

Interesting Detail:
In this passionate declaration, Dickens captures the defiant and overwhelming nature of unrequited love.


20. “Tis better to have loved and lost,

Than never to have loved at all.”
— Alfred Lord Tennyson, 1850, In Memoriam

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम करना और उसे खो देना बेहतर है,
बजाय कभी प्रेम न करने के।”

Interesting Detail:
Tennyson emphasizes the value of experiencing love, even if it leads to heartache, as it enriches life.


21. “I am yours, don’t give myself back to me.”

— Rumi, 13th Century

Hindi Meaning:
“मैं तुम्हारा हूँ, मुझे फिर से मेरे पास मत लौटाना।”

Interesting Detail:
Rumi’s mystical poetry transcends worldly love, presenting a selfless surrender to the beloved.


22. “A heart to love, and in that heart,

Courage to make love known.”
— William Shakespeare, 1604, Macbeth

Hindi Meaning:
“एक दिल जो प्रेम करे, और उस दिल में,
प्रेम को प्रकट करने का साहस हो।”

Interesting Detail:
Shakespeare underlines the bravery needed to confess and express love in its truest form.


23. “I have dreamed of you so much that you are no longer real.”

— Robert Desnos, 1943, I Have Dreamed of You So Much

Hindi Meaning:
“मैंने तुम्हारे बारे में इतना सपना देखा है कि तुम अब वास्तविक नहीं रहे।”

Interesting Detail:
This surreal couplet from Desnos reflects how the lover’s imagination blurs the line between reality and dreams.


24. “Her voice was like the voice the stars

Had when they sang together.”
— Dante Gabriel Rossetti, 1850, The Blessed Damozel

Hindi Meaning:
“उसकी आवाज़ वैसी थी जैसे सितारे एक साथ गाते हैं।”

Interesting Detail:
Rossetti’s couplet likens a lover’s voice to celestial harmony, elevating their presence to a divine realm.

25. “Take all my loves, my love, yea, take them all;

What hast thou then more than thou hadst before?”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 40

Hindi Meaning:
“मेरे सारे प्रेम ले लो, हाँ, मेरे प्रिय, इन्हें ले लो;
तुम्हारे पास अब और क्या होगा जो पहले नहीं था?”

Interesting Detail:
In this sonnet, Shakespeare expresses the selflessness of love, offering everything to the beloved, even if it leaves the lover empty-handed.


26. “At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet.”

— Plato, 4th Century BC

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम के स्पर्श से हर कोई कवि बन जाता है।”

Interesting Detail:
Plato’s timeless observation highlights how love inspires creativity and brings out the poetic soul in everyone.


27. “For love all love of other sights controls,

And makes one little room an everywhere.”
— John Donne, 1633, The Good-Morrow

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम हर दूसरे दृश्य के प्रेम पर हावी हो जाता है,
और एक छोटे से कमरे को हर जगह बना देता है।”

Interesting Detail:
Donne celebrates the intimate connection of lovers, where their shared space becomes their entire world.


28. “Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,

But bears it out even to the edge of doom.”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 116

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम घंटों और हफ्तों में नहीं बदलता,
बल्कि यह कयामत के किनारे तक स्थिर रहता है।”

Interesting Detail:
Shakespeare defines love as eternal and unwavering, a force that transcends time and circumstances.


29. “You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope.”

— Jane Austen, 1817, Persuasion

Hindi Meaning:
“तुमने मेरी आत्मा को छेद दिया। मैं आधा पीड़ा और आधा आशा में हूँ।”

Interesting Detail:
Austen beautifully captures the turmoil of unspoken love, where longing and hope coexist in the heart.


30. “In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities.”

— János Arany, 1857

Hindi Meaning:
“सपनों और प्रेम में कोई असंभव नहीं होता।”

Interesting Detail:
Arany’s couplet emphasizes the boundless nature of love and dreams, where limitations dissolve into possibilities.


31. “Love is the voice under all silences,

The hope which has no opposite in fear.”
— E. E. Cummings, 1950

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम वह आवाज़ है जो हर खामोशी के नीचे है,
वह आशा है जिसका भय में कोई विपरीत नहीं।”

Interesting Detail:
Cummings portrays love as an enduring and fearless emotion that thrives even in the deepest silences.


32. “Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement,

It is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion.”
— Louis de Bernières, 1994, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम सांसों की तेज़ी नहीं है, यह उत्तेजना नहीं है,
यह अनंत जुनून के वादों की घोषणा नहीं है।”

Interesting Detail:
This couplet defines love as a calm, enduring bond rather than fleeting emotions or grand gestures.


33. “When I saw you I fell in love,

And you smiled because you knew.”
— Arrigo Boito, 1887

Hindi Meaning:
“जब मैंने तुम्हें देखा, तो मुझे प्रेम हो गया,
और तुम मुस्कुराए क्योंकि तुमने इसे समझ लिया।”

Interesting Detail:
This line captures the magic of love at first sight and the silent acknowledgment between two hearts.


34. “Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”

— Aristotle, 4th Century BC

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम एक आत्मा का दो शरीरों में निवास है।”

Interesting Detail:
Aristotle’s philosophical definition of love reflects its spiritual nature, where two individuals unite as one.

35. “My love is as a fever, longing still,

For that which longer nurseth the disease.”
— William Shakespeare, 1609, Sonnet 147

Hindi Meaning:
“मेरा प्यार एक बुखार की तरह है, जो अब भी तरसता है,
उसके लिए जो इसे और लंबा पोषण देता है।”

Interesting Detail:
This couplet reflects the passionate yet self-destructive nature of love, likened to an unquenchable fever.


36. “If music be the food of love, play on.”

— William Shakespeare, 1602, Twelfth Night

Hindi Meaning:
“यदि संगीत प्रेम का भोजन है, तो इसे बजाते रहो।”

Interesting Detail:
Shakespeare likens love to an insatiable hunger and music as its nourishment, setting the tone for romantic indulgence.


37. “Love’s mysteries in souls do grow,

But yet the body is his book.”
— John Donne, 1633, The Ecstasy

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम के रहस्य आत्माओं में बढ़ते हैं,
लेकिन शरीर उसकी किताब है।”

Interesting Detail:
Donne’s metaphysical poetry combines spiritual and physical love, emphasizing their interconnectedness.


38. “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height.”
— Elizabeth Barrett Browning, 1850, Sonnet 43

Hindi Meaning:
“मैं तुम्हें कैसे प्रेम करती हूँ? आओ, मैं तरीकों की गिनती करूं।
मैं तुम्हें गहराई, चौड़ाई और ऊंचाई तक प्रेम करती हूँ।”

Interesting Detail:
Browning’s heartfelt sonnet expresses boundless love in its various dimensions, capturing eternal devotion.


39. “Love is the whole and more than all.”

— E. E. Cummings, 1931

Hindi Meaning:
“प्रेम संपूर्ण है और इससे भी अधिक।”

Interesting Detail:
Cummings elevates love to an all-encompassing force, suggesting that it transcends everything else in life.


40. “They do not love that do not show their love.”

— William Shakespeare, 1598, Two Gentlemen of Verona

Hindi Meaning:
“जो अपने प्रेम को प्रकट नहीं करते, वे वास्तव में प्रेम नहीं करते।”

Interesting Detail:
Shakespeare emphasizes the importance of expressing love, as unspoken affection holds no true value.


41. “I wish you to know that you have been the last dream of my soul.”

— Charles Dickens, 1860, A Tale of Two Cities

Hindi Meaning:
“मैं चाहता हूँ कि तुम जानो कि तुम मेरी आत्मा का अंतिम सपना रहे हो।”

Interesting Detail:
Dickens’ poignant line reflects the bittersweet nature of love, where the beloved becomes the final and ultimate longing.


42. “You are always new, the last of your kisses was ever the sweetest.”

— John Keats, 1819, Bright Star

Hindi Meaning:
“तुम हमेशा नए हो, तुम्हारा अंतिम चुंबन अब तक का सबसे मीठा था।”

Interesting Detail:
Keats beautifully captures the timeless freshness of love, where each moment feels as precious as the first.


43. “Who, being loved, is poor?”

— Oscar Wilde, 1891, A Woman of No Importance

Hindi Meaning:
“जो प्रेम किया जाता है, क्या वह कभी गरीब हो सकता है?”

Interesting Detail:
Wilde celebrates love as the greatest wealth, suggesting that no material riches compare to being truly loved.


44. “There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart.”

— Jane Austen, 1811, Sense and Sensibility

Hindi Meaning:
“दिल की कोमलता के समान कोई आकर्षण नहीं है।”

Interesting Detail:
Austen highlights the beauty of compassion and sensitivity, essential qualities in love that outshine external charm.


Why These Couplets Are Timeless

  1. Universality: These couplets resonate with lovers across cultures and times.
  2. Profound Emotions: They delve into love’s joy, pain, and depth with unmatched eloquence.
  3. Symbolism: Nature, soul, and timeless elements amplify their meaning.

🌟 Which of these couplets is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below! 🌟

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