3. Spring-tide

Anonymous. c. 1300


LENTEN ys come with love to toune,
With blosmen ant with briddes roune,
  That al this blisse bryngeth;
Dayes-eyes in this dales,
Notes suete of nyhtegales,
  Vch foul song singeth;
The threstlecoc him threteth oo,
Away is huere wynter wo,
  When woderove springeth;
This foules singeth ferly fele,
Ant wlyteth on huere winter wele,
  That al the wode ryngeth.

The rose rayleth hire rode,
The leves on the lyhte wode
  Waxen al with wille;
The mone mandeth hire bleo,
The lilie is lossom to seo,
  The fenyl ant the fille;
Wowes this wilde drakes,
Miles murgeth huere makes;
  Ase strem that striketh stille,
Mody meneth; so doth mo
(Ichot ycham on of tho)
  For loue that likes ille.

The mone mandeth hire lyht,
So doth the semly sonne bryht.
  When briddes singeth breme;
Deowes donketh the dounes,
Deores with huere derne rounes
  Domes forte deme;
Wormes woweth under cloude,
Wymmen waxeth wounder proude,
  So wel hit wol hem seme,
Yef me shal wonte wille of on,
This wunne weole y wole forgon
  Ant wyht in wode be fleme.


breme
lustily
cloude
clod
deores
dears, lovers
deowes
dews
domes forte deme
for to give (decide) their decisions
donketh
make dank
ferly fele
marvellous many
fille
thyme
fleme
banished
him threteth oo
is aye chiding them
huere
their
huere derne rounes
their secret tales
lossom to seo
lovesome to see
makes
mates
mandeth hire bleo
sends forth her light
miles
males
mody meneth
the moody man makes moan
murgeth
make merry
on of tho
one of them
rayleth hire rode
clothes herself in red
so doth mo
so do many
striketh
flows, trickles
to toune
in its turn
wlyteth
whistle, or look
woderove
woodruff
wowes
woo
wunne weole
wealth of joy
wyht
wight
y wole forgon
I will forgo
The Oxford Book of English Verse, HTML edition