Lyric Poem · Love

Song: To Celia (Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes)

by Ben Jonson · 1616

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1Drink to me only with thine eyes,

2 And I will pledge with mine;

3Or leave a kiss but in the cup,

4 And I'll not look for wine.

5The thirst that from the soul doth rise

6 Doth ask a drink divine;

7But might I of Jove's nectar sup,

8 I would not change for thine.

9I sent thee late a rosy wreath,

10 Not so much honouring thee

11As giving it a hope, that there

12 It could not withered be.

13But thou thereon didst only breathe,

14 And sent'st it back to me;

15Since when it grows, and smells, I swear,

16 Not of itself, but thee.

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“Song: To Celia (Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes)” by Ben Jonson — quilloak.com/poems/song-to-celia

Quick facts

Poem: Song: To Celia (Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes)
Poet: Ben Jonson
Published: 1616
Length: 16 lines
Form: Lyric Poem, Rhyming Poems
Themes: Love

Craft notes

How this poem works

Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape: 16 lines · 2 octaves
Line length: Lines run 6-8 syllables (median 8), consistent with tetrameter. No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.

The poem’s silhouette — approximate syllables per line, measured from the text above. Even bars mean a measured line; ragged bars mean the poem sets its own widths.

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Text, source & rights

A traceable edition

Full-text display is based on the committed source record and a United States term-expiry review.

Author record: Ben Jonson1572–1637
Source record: PoetryDBSong: To Celia (Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes) by ben-jonson, PoetryDB transcription
Display decision: Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record: 1616
Text fingerprint: SHA-256 172a9f7545803058…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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