Sonnet 18
by William Shakespeare
Directions: Translate each line of William Shakespeare’s most famous sonnet into modern-day
English. If you’re unsure of what a line might mean, take your best guess. Although Shakespeare’s
language can be intimidating in large chunks, when broken down, I think you’ll find that it isn’t so scary!
Actual Line
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.
Your Modern Translation
Sonnet 18
by William Shakespeare
answer key
Actual Line
Your Modern Translation
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Should I compare you to a day in summer?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
You are more lovely and more consistent
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
Rough winds destroy spring flowers
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
And summer does not last long enough
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
Sometimes the sun shines too hot
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;
And sunlight does not always shine
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
And every beauty fades eventually
By chance, or nature’s changing course, untrimm’d;
From misfortune, or because of nature’s cycle
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
But your eternal summer/beauty will never fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
You will never lose possession of your beauty
Nor shall Death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
Death will never take you (you will never die)
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st;
Because you’ll always be in this poem’s lines
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
As long as the world exists & people are alive
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
This poem will always exist, making you immortal