These are the top twenty (20) most popular poems of Edward Lear.
From The Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo to The Umbrageous Umbrella-maker.
If you want to know his greatest poems of all time, then this poetry collection is for you.
Keep reading!…
The Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo
By Edward Lear
The Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo,
whose Head was ever so much bigger than his
Body, and whose Hat was rather small.
The Jumblies.
By Edward Lear
I.
They went to sea in a sieve, they did;
In a sieve they went to sea:
In spite of all their friends could say,
On a winter’s morn, on a stormy day,
In a sieve they went to sea.
And when the sieve turned round and round,
And every one cried, “You’ll all be drowned!”
They called aloud, “Our sieve ain’t big;
But we don’t care a button, we don’t care a fig:
In a sieve we’ll go to sea!”
Far and few, far and few,
Are the lands where the Jumblies live:
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue
And they went to sea in a sieve.
II.
They sailed away in a sieve, they did,
In a sieve they sailed so fast,
With only a beautiful pea-green veil
Tied with a ribbon, by way of a sail,
To a small tobacco-pipe mast.
And every one said who saw them go,
“Oh! won’t they be soon upset, you know?
For the sky is dark, and the voyage is long;
And, happen what may, it’s extremely wrong
In a sieve to sail so fast.”
Far and few, far and few,
Are the lands where the Jumblies live:
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue;
And they went to sea in a sieve.
III.
The water it soon came in, it did;
The water it soon came in:
So, to keep them dry, they wrapped their feet
In a pinky paper all folded neat;
And they fastened it down with a pin.
And they passed the night in a crockery-jar;
And each of them said, “How wise we are!
Though the sky be dark, and the voyage be long,
Yet we never can think we were rash or wrong,
While round in our sieve we spin.”
Far and few, far and few,
Are the lands where the Jumblies live:
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue;
And they went to sea in a sieve.
IV.
And all night long they sailed away;
And when the sun went down,
They whistled and warbled a moony song
To the echoing sound of a coppery gong,
In the shade of the mountains brown.
“O Timballoo! How happy we are
When we live in a sieve and a crockery-jar!
And all night long, in the moonlight pale,
We sail away with a pea-green sail
In the shade of the mountains brown.”
Far and few, far and few,
Are the lands where the Jumblies live:
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue;
And they went to sea in a sieve.
V.
They sailed to the Western Sea, they did, –
To a land all covered with trees:
And they bought an owl, and a useful cart,
And a pound of rice, and a cranberry-tart,
And a hive of silvery bees;
And they bought a pig, and some green jackdaws,
And a lovely monkey with lollipop paws,
And forty bottles of ring-bo-ree,
And no end of Stilton cheese.
Far and few, far and few,
Are the lands where the Jumblies live:
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue;
And they went to sea in a sieve.
VI.
And in twenty years they all came back, –
In twenty years or more;
And every one said, “How tall they’ve grown!
For they’ve been to the Lakes, and the Torrible Zone,
And the hills of the Chankly Bore.”
And they drank their health, and gave them a feast
Of dumplings made of beautiful yeast;
And every one said, “If we only live,
We, too, will go to sea in a sieve,
To the hills of the Chankly Bore.”
Far and few, far and few,
Are the lands where the Jumblies live:
Their heads are green, and their hands are blue;
And they went to sea in a sieve.
The Owl And The Pussy-Cat.
By Edward Lear
I.
The Owl and the Pussy-Cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat:
They took some honey, and plenty of money
Wrapped up in a five-pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
“O lovely Pussy, O Pussy, my love,
What a beautiful Pussy you are,
You are,
You are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are!”
II.
Pussy said to the Owl, “You elegant fowl,
How charmingly sweet you sing!
Oh! let us be married; too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?”
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the bong-tree grows;
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood,
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
III.
“Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?” Said the Piggy, “I will.”
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.
More Nonsense Limerick 49
By Edward Lear
There was an old man on the Border,
Who lived in the utmost disorder;
He danced with the cat,
And made tea in his hat,
Which vexed all the folks on the Border.
| Nonsense Alphabet 1 By Edward Lear A  A was an ant Who seldom stood still, And who made a nice house In the side of a hill. a! Nice little ant! B  B was a book With a binding of blue, And pictures and stories For me and for you. b! Nice little book! C  C was a cat Who ran after a rat; But his courage did fail When she seized on his tail. c! Crafty old cat! D  D was a duck With spots on his back, Who lived in the water, And always said “Quack!” d! Dear little duck! E  E was an elephant, Stately and wise: He had tusks and a trunk, And two queer little eyes. e! Oh, what funny small eyes! F  F was a fish Who was caught in a net; But he got out again, And is quite alive yet. f! Lively young fish! G  G was a goat Who was spotted with brown: When he did not lie still He walked up and down. g! Good little goat! H  H was a hat Which was all on one side; Its crown was too high, And its brim was too wide. h! Oh, what a hat! I  I was some ice So white and so nice, But which nobody tasted; And so it was wasted. i! All that good ice! J  J was a jackdaw Who hopped up and down In the principal street Of a neighboring town. j! All through the town! K  K was a kite Which flew out of sight, Above houses so high, Quite into the sky. k Fly away, kite! L  L was a light Which burned all the night, And lighted the gloom Of a very dark room. l! Useful nice light! M  M was a mill Which stood on a hill, And turned round and round With a loud hummy sound. m! Useful old mill! N  N was a net Which was thrown in the sea To catch fish for dinner For you and for me. n! Nice little net! O  O was an orange So yellow and round: When it fell off the tree, It fell down to the ground. o! Down to the ground! P  P was a pig, Who was not very big; But his tail was too curly, And that made him surly. p! Cross little pig! Q  Q was a quail With a very short tail; And he fed upon corn In the evening and morn. q! Quaint little quail! R  R was a rabbit, Who had a bad habit Of eating the flowers In gardens and bowers. r! Naughty fat rabbit! S  S was the sugar-tongs, Nippity-nee, To take up the sugar To put in our tea. s! Nippity-nee! T  T was a tortoise, All yellow and black: He walked slowly away, And he never came back. t! Torty never came back! U  U was an urn All polished and bright, And full of hot water At noon and at night. u! Useful old urn! V  V was a villa Which stood on a hill, By the side of a river, And close to a mill. v! Nice little villa! W  W was a whale With a very long tail, Whose movements were frantic Across the Atlantic. w! Monstrous old whale! X  X was King Xerxes, Who, more than all Turks, is Renowned for his fashion Of fury and passion. x! Angry old Xerxes! Y  Y was a yew, Which flourished and grew By a quiet abode Near the side of a road. y! Dark little yew! Z  Z was some zinc, So shiny and bright, Which caused you to wink In the sun’s merry light. z! Beautiful zinc! |
The Absolutely Abstemious Ass,
By Edward Lear
The Absolutely Abstemious Ass,
who resided in a Barrel, and only lived on
Soda Water and Pickled Cucumbers.
Alphabet, No. 5.
By Edward Lear
A
A was an Area Arch
Where washerwomen sat;
They made a lot of lovely starch
To starch Papa’s Cravat.
B
B was a Bottle blue,
Which was not very small;
Papa he filled it full of beer,
And then he drank it all.
C
C was Papa’s gray Cat,
Who caught a squeaky Mouse;
She pulled him by his twirly tail
All about the house.
D
D was Papa’s white Duck,
Who had a curly tail;
One day it ate a great fat frog,
Besides a leetle snail.
E
E was a little Egg,
Upon the breakfast table;
Papa came in and ate it up
As fast as he was able.
F
F was a little Fish.
Cook in the river took it
Papa said, “Cook! Cook! bring a dish!
And, Cook! be quick and cook it!”
G
G was Papa’s new Gun;
He put it in a box;
And then he went and bought a bun,
And walked about the Docks.
H
H was Papa’s new Hat;
He wore it on his head;
Outside it was completely black,
But inside it was red.
I
I was an Inkstand new,
Papa he likes to use it;
He keeps it in his pocket now,
For fear that he should lose it.
J
J was some Apple Jam,
Of which Papa ate part;
But all the rest he took away
And stuffed into a tart.
K
K was a great new Kite;
Papa he saw it fly
Above a thousand chimney pots,
And all about the sky.
L
L was a fine new Lamp;
But when the wick was lit,
Papa he said, “This Light ain’t good!
I cannot read a bit!”
M
M was a dish of mince;
It looked so good to eat!
Papa, he quickly ate it up,
And said, “This is a treat!”
N
N was a Nut that grew
High up upon a tree;
Papa, who could not reach it, said,
“That’s _much_ too high for me!”
O
O was an Owl who flew
All in the dark away,
Papa said, “What an owl you are!
Why don’t you fly by day?”
P
P was a little Pig,
Went out to take a walk;
Papa he said, “If Piggy dead,
He’d all turn into Pork!”
Q
Q was a Quince that hung
Upon a garden tree;
Papa he brought it with him home,
And ate it with his tea.
R
R was a Railway Rug
Extremely large and warm;
Papa he wrapped it round his head,
In a most dreadful storm.
S
S was Papa’s new Stick,
Papa’s new thumping Stick,
To thump extremely wicked boys,
Because it was so thick.
T
T was a tumbler full
Of Punch all hot and good;
Papa he drank it up, when in
The middle of a wood.
U
U was a silver urn,
Full of hot scalding water;
Papa said, “If that Urn were mine,
I’d give it to my daughter!”
V
V was a Villain; once
He stole a piece of beef.
Papa he said, “Oh, dreadful man!
That Villain is a Thief!”
W
W was a Watch of Gold:
It told the time of day,
So that Papa knew when to come,
And when to go away.
X
X was King Xerxes, whom
Papa much wished to know;
But this he could not do, because
Xerxes died long ago.
Y
Y was a Youth, who kicked
And screamed and cried like mad;
Papa he said, “Your conduct is
Abominably bad!”
Z
Z was a Zebra striped
And streaked with lines of black;
Papa said once, he thought he’d like
A ride upon his back.
Nonsense Alphabet 3
By Edward Lear
A
A was an ape,
Who stole some white tape,
And tied up his toes
In four beautiful bows.
a!
Funny old ape!
B
B was a bat,
Who slept all the day,
And fluttered about
When the sun went away.
b!
Brown little bat!
C
C was a camel:
You rode on his hump;
And if you fell off,
You came down such a bump!
c!
What a high camel!
D
D was a dove,
Who lived in a wood,
With such pretty soft wings,
And so gentle and good!
d!
Dear little dove!
E
E was an eagle,
Who sat on the rocks,
And looked down on the fields
And the-far-away flocks.
e!
Beautiful eagle!
F
F was a fan
Made of beautiful stuff;
And when it was used,
It went puffy-puff-puff!
f!
Nice little fan!
G
G was a gooseberry,
Perfectly red;
To be made into jam,
And eaten with bread.
g!
Gooseberry red!
H
H was a heron,
Who stood in a stream:
The length of his neck
And his legs was extreme.
h!
Long-legged heron!
I
I was an inkstand,
Which stood on a table,
With a nice pen to write with
When we are able.
i!
Neat little inkstand!
J
J was a jug,
So pretty and white,
With fresh water in it
At morning and night.
j!
Nice little jug!
K
K was a kingfisher:
Quickly he flew,
So bright and so pretty! –
Green, purple, and blue.
k!
Kingfisher blue!
L
L was a lily,
So white and so sweet!
To see it and smell it
Was quite a nice treat.
l!
Beautiful lily!
M
M was a man,
Who walked round and round;
And he wore a long coat
That came down to the ground.
m!
Funny old man!
N
N was a nut
So smooth and so brown!
And when it was ripe,
It fell tumble-dum-down.
n!
Nice little nut!
O
O was an oyster,
Who lived in his shell:
If you let him alone,
He felt perfectly well.
o!
Open-mouthed oyster!
P
P was a polly,
All red, blue, and green, –
The most beautiful polly
That ever was seen.
p!
Poor little polly!
Q
Q was a quill
Made into a pen;
But I do not know where,
And I cannot say when.
q!
Nice little quill!
R
R was a rattlesnake,
Rolled up so tight,
Those who saw him ran quickly,
For fear he should bite.
r!
Rattlesnake bite!
S
S was a screw
To screw down a box;
And then it was fastened
Without any locks.
s!
Valuable screw!
T
T was a thimble,
Of silver so bright!
When placed on the finger,
It fitted so tight!
t!
Nice little thimble!
U
U was an upper-coat,
Woolly and warm,
To wear over all
In the snow or the storm.
u!
What a nice upper-coat!
V
V was a veil
With a border upon it,
And a ribbon to tie it
All round a pink bonnet.
v!
Pretty green veil!
W
W was a watch,
Where, in letters of gold,
The hour of the day
You might always behold.
w!
Beautiful watch!
X
X was King Xerxes,
Who wore on his head
A mighty large turban,
Green, yellow, and red.
x!
Look at King Xerxes!
Y
Y was a yak,
From the land of Thibet:
Except his white tail,
He was all black as jet.
y!
Look at the yak!
Z
Z was a zebra,
All striped white and black;
And if he were tame,
You might ride on his back.
z!
Pretty striped zebra!
| The Zigzag Zealous Zebra By Edward Lear The Zigzag Zealous Zebra, who carried five Monkeys on his back all the way to Jellibolee.  |
The Fizzgiggious Fish,
By Edward Lear
The Fizzgiggious Fish,
who always walked about upon Stilts,
because he had no legs.
The Enthusiastic Elephant,
By Edward Lear
The Enthusiastic Elephant,
who ferried himself across the water with the
Kitchen Poker and a New pair of Ear-rings.
| The Pelican Chorus. By Edward Lear  King and Queen of the Pelicans we; No other Birds so grand we see! None but we have feet like fins! With lovely leathery throats and chins! Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelican jee! We think no Birds so happy as we! Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelican Jill! We think so then, and we thought so still We live on the Nile. The Nile we love. By night we sleep on the cliffs above; By day we fish, and at eve we stand On long bare islands of yellow sand. And when the sun sinks slowly down, And the great rock walls grow dark and brown, Where the purple river rolls fast and dim And the Ivory Ibis starlike skim, Wing to wing we dance around, Stamping our feet with a flumpy sound, Opening our mouths as Pelicans ought; And this is the song we nightly snort, – Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelican jee! We think no Birds so happy as we! Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelican jill! We think so then, and we thought so still! Last year came out our Daughter Dell, And all the Birds received her well. To do her honor a feast we made For every bird that can swim or wade, – Herons and Gulls, and Cormorants black, Cranes, and Flamingoes with scarlet back, Plovers and Storks, and Geese in clouds, Swans and Dilberry Ducks in crowds: Thousands of Birds in wondrous flight! They ate and drank and danced all night, And echoing back from the rocks you heard Multitude-echoes from Bird and Bird, – Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelican jee! We think no Birds so happy as we! Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelican jill! We think so then, and we thought so still! Yes, they came; and among the rest The King of the Cranes all grandly dressed. Such a lovely tail! Its feathers float Between the ends of his blue dress-coat; With pea-green trowsers all so neat, And a delicate frill to hide his feet (For though no one speaks of it, every one knows He has got no webs between his toes). As soon as he saw our Daughter Dell, In violent love that Crane King fell, – On seeing her waddling form so fair, With a wreath of shrimps in her short white hair. And before the end of the next long day Our Dell had given her heart away; For the King of the Cranes had won that heart With a Crocodile’s egg and a large fish-tart. She vowed to marry the King of the Cranes, Leaving the Nile for stranger plains; And away they flew in a gathering crowd Of endless birds in a lengthening cloud. Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelican jee! We think no Birds so happy as we! Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelican jill! We think so then, and we thought so still! And far away in the twilight sky We heard them singing a lessening cry, – Farther and farther, till out of sight, And we stood alone in the silent night! Often since, in the nights of June, We sit on the sand and watch the moon, – She has gone to the great Gromboolian Plain, And we probably never shall meet again! Oft, in the long still nights of June, We sit on the rocks and watch the moon, – She dwells by the streams of the Chankly Bore. And we probably never shall see her more. Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelican jee! We think no Birds so happy as we! Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelican jill! We think so then, and we thought so still!  |
The Tumultuous Tom-tommy Tortoise
By Edward Lear
The Tumultuous Tom-tommy Tortoise,
who beat a Drum all day long in the
middle of the wilderness.
| The Duck And The Kangaroo. By Edward Lear  I. Said the Duck to the Kangaroo, “Good gracious! how you hop Over the fields, and the water too, As if you never would stop! My life is a bore in this nasty pond; And I long to go out in the world beyond: I wish I could hop like you,” Said the Duck to the Kangaroo. II. “Please give me a ride on your back,” Said the Duck to the Kangaroo: “I would sit quite still, and say nothing but ‘Quack’ The whole of the long day through; And we ‘d go the Dee, and the Jelly Bo Lee, Over the land, and over the sea: Please take me a ride! oh, do!” Said the Duck to the Kangaroo.  III. Said the Kangaroo to the Duck, “This requires some little reflection. Perhaps, on the whole, it might bring me luck; And there seems but one objection; Which is, if you’ll let me speak so bold, Your feet are unpleasantly wet and cold, And would probably give me the roo- Matiz,” said the Kangaroo. IV. Said the Duck, “As I sate on the rocks, I have thought over that completely; And I bought four pairs of worsted socks, Which fit my web-feet neatly; And, to keep out the cold, I’ve bought a cloak; And every day a cigar I’ll smoke; All to follow my own dear true Love of a Kangaroo.” V. Said the Kangaroo, “I’m ready, All in the moonlight pale; But to balance me well, dear Duck, sit steady, And quite at the end of my tail.”  So away they went with a hop and a bound; And they hopped the whole world three times round. And who so happy, oh! who, As the Duck and the Kangaroo?  |
Book Of Nonsense Limerick 1.
By Edward Lear
There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, “It is just as I feared! –
Two Owls and a Hen,
Four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard!”
| The Daddy Long-Legs And The Fly. By Edward Lear  I. Once Mr. Daddy Long-legs, Dressed in brown and gray, Walked about upon the sands Upon a summer’s day: And there among the pebbles, When the wind was rather cold, He met with Mr. Floppy Fly, All dressed in blue and gold; And, as it was too soon to dine, They drank some periwinkle-wine, And played an hour or two, or more, At battlecock and shuttledore. II. Said Mr. Daddy Long-legs To Mr. Floppy Fly, “Why do you never come to court? I wish you ‘d tell me why. All gold and shine, in dress so fine, You’d quite delight the court. Why do you never go at all? I really think you _ought_. And, if you went, you’d see such sights! Such rugs and jugs and candle-lights! And, more than all, the king and queen, – One in red, and one in green.” III. “O Mr. Daddy Long-legs!” Said Mr. Floppy Fly, “It’s true I never go to court; And I will tell you why. If I had six long legs like yours, At once I’d go to court; But, oh! I can’t, because _my_ legs Are so extremely short. And I’m afraid the king and queen (One in red, and one in green) Would say aloud, ‘You are not fit, You Fly, to come to court a bit!'” IV. “Oh, Mr. Daddy Long-legs!” Said Mr. Floppy Fly, “I wish you ‘d sing one little song, One mumbian melody. You used to sing so awful well In former days gone by; But now you never sing at all: I wish you’d tell me why: For, if you would, the silvery sound Would please the shrimps and cockles round, And all the crabs would gladly come To hear you sing, ‘Ah, Hum di Hum!'” V. Said Mr. Daddy Long-legs, “I can never sing again; And, if you wish, I’ll tell you why, Although it gives me pain. For years I cannot hum a bit, Or sing the smallest song; And this the dreadful reason is, – My legs are grown too long! My six long legs, all here and there, Oppress my bosom with despair; And, if I stand or lie or sit, I cannot sing one single bit!” VI. So Mr. Daddy Long-legs And Mr. Floppy Fly Sat down in silence by the sea, And gazed upon the sky. They said, “This is a dreadful thing! The world has all gone wrong, Since one has legs too short by half, The other much too long. One never more can go to court, Because his legs have grown too short; The other cannot sing a song, Because his legs have grown too long!” VII. Then Mr. Daddy Long-legs And Mr. Floppy Fly Rushed downward to the foamy sea With one sponge-taneous cry: And there they found a little boat, Whose sails were pink and gray; And off they sailed among the waves, Far and far away: They sailed across the silent main, And reached the great Gromboolian Plain; And there they play forevermore At battlecock and shuttledore.  |
The Judicious Jubilant Jay
By Edward Lear
The Judicious Jubilant Jay,
who did up her Back Hair every morning with a Wreath of Roses,
Three feathers, and a Gold Pin.
The Visibly Vicious Vulture
By Edward Lear
The Visibly Vicious Vulture,
who wrote some Verses to a Veal-cutlet in a
Volume bound in Vellum.
Calico Pie.
By Edward Lear
I.
Calico pie,
The little birds fly
Down to the calico-tree:
Their wings were blue,
And they sang “Tilly-loo!”
Till away they flew;
And they never came back to me!
They never came back,
They never came back,
They never came back to me!
II.
Calico jam,
The little Fish swam
Over the Syllabub Sea.
He took off his hat
To the Sole and the Sprat,
And the Willeby-wat:
But he never came back to me;
He never came back,
He never came back,
He never came back to me.
III.
Calico ban,
The little Mice ran
To be ready in time for tea;
Flippity flup,
They drank it all up,
And danced in the cup:
But they never came back to me;
They never came back,
They never came back,
They never came back to me.
IV.
Calico drum,
The Grasshoppers come,
The Butterfly, Beetle, and Bee,
Over the ground,
Around and round,
With a hop and a bound;
But they never came back,
They never came back,
They never came back.
They never came back to me.
The Umbrageous Umbrella-maker
By Edward Lear
The Umbrageous Umbrella-maker,
whose Face nobody ever saw, because it was
always covered by his Umbrella.
Compared to other collections, this poetry collection is extraordinary. That is why Edward Lear was known principally for his popular nonsense collections of poems, songs, short stories, botanical drawings, recipes, and alphabets. His poems also contain drawings that are entertaining to see while reading.
Nonsense Alphabet 1, Alphabet, No. 5. Nonsense Alphabet 3 are my favorite poems in this collection. It’s just amazing how he managed to write poems alphabetically together with drawings in each letter.
What about you? What’s your most favorite poem of Edward Lear?
Do you still want to add another of his poem to this list? Let me know in the comment section below! 😉
Poetry-for-All 