Lyric Poem · Life
To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time
by Robert Herrick · 1648
Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today
Tomorrow will be dying.
The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he's a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he's to setting.
That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer;
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.
Then be not coy, but use your time,
And while ye may, go marry;
For having lost but once your prime,
You may forever tarry.
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“To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” by Robert Herrick — quilloak.com/poems/to-the-virgins-to-make-much-of-time
Quick facts
- Poem
- To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time
- Poet
- Robert Herrick
- Published
- 1648
- Length
- 16 lines
- Form
- Lyric Poem, Rhyming Poems
- Themes
- Life, Inspirational
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 · 4 quatrains
- Line length
- Lines run 7-9 syllables (median 8), consistent with tetrameter. No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.
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Text, source & rights
A traceable edition
Full-text display is based on a United States term-expiry review; status can differ elsewhere.
- Author record
- Robert Herrick1591–1674
- Source record
- QuillOak curated editionTo the Virgins, to Make Much of Time (1648) by robert-herrick
- Display decision
- Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
- Publication record
- 1648
- Text fingerprint
- SHA-256 e4ef49ee5cecd052…
- Editorial handling
- Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.
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