31 Best Romantic Wedding Poems For Your Marriage Ceremony

Rekindle the romance in your marriage with these words brimming with passion.

Reviewed by Amira Martin, Licensed Clinical Social Worker & Psychotherapist
Written by Sneha Tete, Certified Relationship Coach
Edited by Subhrojyoti Mukherjee  • 

The beauty of wedding poems is that they add a personal touch to your special day. A poem can convey more emotions, thoughts, or words than any speech ever. Therefore, a poem has timeless appeal. When poems are recited, the room fills with laughter, love, and happy tears. You can read these poems at the ring exchange or before the blessing is pronounced. We will present you with our collection of 31 wedding poems to help you express your wedding sentiments. Choose whatever resonates with you, and enjoy your big day!

Romantic Poems For The Wedding Ceremony

Romantic poems for wedding ceremony
Image: Shutterstock

1. A Wedding Toast – James Bertolino

May your love be firm,

and may your dream of life together

be a river between two shores—

by day bathed in sunlight, and by night

illuminated from within. May the heron

carry news of you to the heavens, and the salmon bring

the sea’s blue grace. May your twin thoughts

spiral upward like leafy vines,

like fiddle strings in the wind,

and be as noble as the Douglas fir.

May you never find yourselves back to back

without love pulling you around

into each other’s arms.

2. At Nightfall – Charles Hanson Towne

I need so much the quiet of your love,
After the day’s loud strife;
I need your calm all other things above,
After the stress of life.

I crave the haven that in your dear heart lies,
After all toil is done;
I need the star shine of your heavenly eyes,
After the day’s great sun.

3. Love Song– Henry Dumas

Beloved,

I have to adore the earth:

The wind must have heard

your voice once.

It echoes and sings like you.

The soil must have tasted

you once.

It is laden with your scent.

The trees honor you

in gold

and blush when you pass.

I know why the north country

is frozen.

It has been trying to preserve

your memory.

I know why the desert

burns with fever.

It was wept too long without you.

On hands and knees,

the ocean begs up the beach,

and falls at your feet.

I have to adore

the mirror of the earth.

You have taught her well

how to be beautiful.

4. The Portrait Of A Lady (Excerpt) – Henry James

It has made me better loving you…
it has made me wiser, and easier, and brighter.
I used to want a great many things before,
and to be angry that I did not have them.
Theoretically, I was satisfied.
I flattered myself that I had limited my wants.
But I was subject to irritation;
I used to have morbid sterile hateful fits of hunger, of desire.
Now I really am satisfied,
because I can’t think of anything better.
It’s just as when one has been trying to spell out a book in the twilight,
and suddenly the lamp comes in.
I had been putting out my eyes over the book of life,
and finding nothing to reward me for my pains;
but now that I can read it properly I see that it’s a delightful story.

Beautiful romantic couple
Image: Shutterstock
protip_icon Trivia

William Archibald turned the novel into a Broadway play, which debuted in December 1954 and starred Barbara O’Neil as Madame Serena Merle. The Portrait of a Lady was turned into a television miniseries by the BBC in 1968, with Suzanne Neve as Isabel and Richard Chamberlain playing Ralph Touchett.

5. I Belong In Your Arms – Deborah Bridea

I belong in your arms
Finally, I have found a place
Into which I fit Perfectly, Safely
And securely with no doubts,
No fears, No sadness, No tears.

This place is filled with happiness and laughter
Yet it is spacious enough, to allow me
The freedom to move around,
To live my life and be myself.

This wonderful place, which
I never believed really existed,
I have found finally
Inside your arms, Inside your heart, inside your love.

6. I Carry Your Heart With Me – E. E. Cummings

I carry your heart with me (I carry it in

my heart) I am never without it (anywhere

I go you go, my dear; and whatever is done

by only me is your doing, my darling).

I fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) I want

no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)

and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant

and whatever a sun will always sing is you.

Here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows

higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)

and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart.

I carry your heart (I carry it in my heart)

protip_icon Trivia

This poem, published in 1952, is one of E. E. Cummings’ most well-known love poems. The speaker addresses the poem to an unnamed lover and implies that everything in life has become imbued with their romanticism because of their strong emotional connection.

7. Love Listen – Ann Gray

Let’s love, listen, take time
when time is all we have.
Let’s be unafraid to be kind,
learn to disregard the bad
if the good outweighs it daily.
Let’s make a gift of silence,
the day’s hushing into dark,
and when we hold each other
let’s always be astonished
we are where we want to be.
Let’s hope to age together,
but if we can’t, let’s promise now
to remember how we shone
when we were at our best,
when we were most ourselves.

8. I Promise To Love You — Sean Short

I promise to Love you through the good times and bad

I’ll Love you when I’m angry, hurt and mad

Love is a choice I’ve made to devote my life

To making you, my world, my wife

Nothing will ever change that choice that I’ve made

Even when we feel our Love start to fade

It’s inside my soul, and nothing can shake

My Love for you, that’s a promise I won’t break.

Mischievous friends and relatives play a pivotal role in keeping the party going and making it enjoyable for all. Scroll down for some quick-witted and comical poems that are a perfect fit for this day.

Funny Poems For The Bride And Groom From Friends

Funny wedding poems for the bride and groom from friends
Image: Shutterstock

9. He Never Leaves The Seat Up – Anonymous

He never leaves the seat up

Or wet towels upon the floor

The toothpaste has the lid on

And he always shuts the door!

She’s very clean and tidy

Though she may sometimes delude

Leave your things out at your peril

In a second they’ll have moved!

He’s a very active person

As are all his next of kin

Where as she likes lazy days

He’ll still drag her to the gym!

He romances her and dines her

Home cooked dinners and the like

He even knows her favourite food

And spoils her day and night!

She’s thoughtful when he looks at her

A smile upon his face

Will he look that good in 50 years

When his dentures aren’t in place?!

He says he loves her figure

And her mental prowess too

But when gravity takes her over

Will she charm with her IQ?

She says she loves his kindness

And his patience is a must

And of course she thinks he’s handsome

Which in her eyes is a plus!

They’re both not wholly perfect

But who are we to judge

He can be pig headed

Where as she won’t even budge!

All that said and done

They love the time they spent together

And I hope as I’m sure you do

That this fine day will last forever.

He’ll be more than just her husband

He’ll also be her friend

And she’ll be more than just his wife

She’s be his soul mate ‘till the end.

10. Be My Homer – Anonymous

Be my Homer

I wanna be your Marge.

If I’m your Norfolk Broads

Will you be my barge?

Let’s please be Tom and Barbara,

I will show you The Good Life.

Even though we’re not yet married

I would love to be your wife.

I’ve the passion Lily Munster

has for her dear Herman.

I would love you if you were ginger,

I would love you if you were German.

Like Mr. and Mrs. Huxtable,

We’d smooch even when we’re wrinkly.

I’ll even consider ironing your shirts,

But I hope you like them crinkly.

Like Mr. and Mrs. Incredible

I’m flexible and you’re tough.

But if you promise to be my true love

That will always be enough.

Like Bonny and that Clyde guy

without all the dying.

Like Gwyneth and that Coldplay man

without all the crying.

My partner in crime, the love of my life.

11. What’s Mickey Without Minnie? – Anonymous

What’s Mickey without Minnie,
Or Piglet without Pooh,
What’s Donald without Daisy?
That’s me without you.

When Ariel doesn’t sing,
and Pooh hates honey,
when Tigger stops bouncing,
and Goofy isn’t funny.

When Peter Pan can’t fly,
and Simba never roars,
when Alice no longer fits
through small doors.

When Dumbo’s ears are small,
and happily ever after isn’t true,

Even then, I won’t stop loving you.

12. When I’m Sixty-Four – The Beatles

When I get older losing my hair

Many years from now

Will you still be sending me a Valentine

Birthday greetings, bottle of wine?

If I’d been out till quarter to three

Would you lock the door?

Will you still need me, will you still feed me

When I’m sixty-four?

You’ll be older too

And if you say the word

I could stay with you

I could be handy, mending a fuse

When your lights have gone

You can knit a sweater by the fireside

Sunday mornings go for a ride

Doing the garden, digging the weeds

Who could ask for more?

Will you still need me, will you still feed me

When I’m sixty-four?

Every summer we can rent a cottage in the Isle of Wight

If it’s not too dear

We shall scrimp and save

Grandchildren on your knee

Vera, Chuck and Dave

Send me a postcard, drop me a line

Stating point of view

Indicate precisely what you mean to say

Yours sincerely, wasting away

Give me your answer, fill in a form

Mine forevermore

Will you still need me, will you still feed me

When I’m sixty-four?

Cheerful newlyweds
Image: Shutterstock

13. Yes, I’ll Marry You – Pam Ayres

Yes, I’ll marry you, my dear.
And here’s the reason why;
So I can push you out of bed
When the baby starts to cry,
And if we hear a knocking
And it’s creepy and it’s late,
I hand you the torch you see,
And you investigate.

Yes, I’ll marry you, my dear,
You may not apprehend it,
But when the tumble-drier goes
It’s you that has to mend it,
You have to face the neighbour
Should our Labrador attack him,
And if a drunkard fondles me
It’s you that has to whack him.

Yes, I’ll marry you,
You’re virile and you’re lean,
My house is like a pigsty
You can help to keep it clean.
That sexy little dinner
Which you served by candlelight,
As I do chipolatas,
You can cook it every night!

It’s you who has to work the drill
And put up curtain track,
And when I’ve got PMT
It’s you who gets the flak,
I do see great advantages,
But none of them for you,
And so before you see the light,
I do, I do, I do!

14. Love Me When I’m Old – Bee Rawlinson

Love me when I’m old and shocking
Peel off my elastic stockings
Swing me from the chandeliers
Let’s be randy bad old dears.
Push around my chromed bath chair
Let me tease your white chest hair
Scaring children, swapping dentures
Let us have some great adventures
Take me to the dogs and bingo
Teach me how to speak the lingo
Bone my eels and bring me tea
Show me how it’s meant to be
Take me to your special places
Watching all the puzzled faces
You in shorts and socks and sandals
Me with warts and huge love-handles
As the need for love enthrals
Wrestle with my damp proof smalls
Make me laugh without constraint
Buy me chocolate body paint
Hold me safe throughout the night
When my hair has turned to white
Believe me when I say it’s true
I’ve waited all my life for you.

15. I Wanna Be Yours – John Cooper Clarke

I wanna be your vacuum cleaner
breathing in your dust
I wanna be your Ford Cortina
I will never rust

If you like your coffee hot
let me be your coffee pot
You call the shots
I wanna be yours

I wanna be your raincoat
for those frequent rainy days
I wanna be your dreamboat
when you want to sail away

Let me be your teddy bear
take me with you anywhere
I don’t care
I wanna be yours

I wanna be your electric meter
I will not run out
I wanna be the electric heater
you’ll get cold without

I wanna be your setting lotion
hold your hair in deep devotion
Deep as the deep Atlantic ocean
that’s how deep is my devotion.

For couples who like to keep it short and sweet or prefer to say a lot in fewer words, the next section has just the stuff for you. Profess your love and declare unfaltering devotion with these short yet awe-inspiring poems.

Short Poems For The Wedding Ceremony

Short poems for the wedding ceremony
Image: Shutterstock

 16. You Give Light – Anonymous

You gave light to my soul
You helped me to be whole
I have felt love for you before
And it will be more and more,
You are mine, my dear
You are the angel from above
Who taught me how to love.
Please, forever keep me near.

 17.  Love Is – Adrian Henri

Love is…

Love is feeling cold in the back of vans

Love is a fan club with only two fans

Love is walking holding paint-stained hands

Love is.

Love is fish and chips on winter nights

Love is blankets full of strange delights

Love is when you don’t put out the light

Love is

Love is the presents in Christmas shops

Love is when you’re feeling Top of the Pops

Love is what happens when the music stops

Love is

Love is white panties lying all forlorn

Love is pink nightdresses still slightly warm

Love is when you have to leave at dawn

Love is

Love is you and love is me

Love is prison and love is free

Love’s what’s there when you are away from me

Love is…

18.  Pathways – Rainer Maria Rilke

Understand, I’ll slip quietly
away from the noisy crowd
when I see the pale
stars rising, blooming, over the oaks.

I’ll pursue solitary pathways
through the pale twilit meadows,
with only this one dream:

You come too.

19. To Be One With Each Other – George Eliot

What greater thing is there for two human souls,

than to feel that they are joined for life –

to strengthen each other in all labor,

to rest on each other in all sorrow,

to minister to each other in all pain,

to share with each other in all gladness,

to be one with each other in the silent unspoken memories.

20. When Someone Dries Your Tears – Anonymous

When someone dries your tears,
When someone wins your heart.
Love has come and set you free,
A whole new life shall start!

Today is beginning of the rest of your life,
Together forever as husband and wife.
Your dreams will come true with love and much more,
Happiness to share and the world to explore!

Young couple on their wedding day
Image: Shutterstock

21. Beauty That Is Never Old – James Weldon Johnson

When buffeted and beaten by life’s storms,
When by the bitter cares of life oppressed,
I want no surer haven than your arms,
I want no sweeter heaven than your breast.

When over my life’s way there falls the blight
Of sunless days, and nights of starless skies;
Enough for me, the calm and steadfast light
That softly shines within your loving eyes.

The world, for me, and all the world can hold
Is circled by your arms; for me there lies,
Within the lights and shadows of your eyes,
The only beauty that is never old.

22. When I Feel The Warmth In Her Heart – Anonymous

When I feel the warmth in her heart,
I know she is the one
from whom I shall never depart.
When I rest my head on her knees,
I can weave a future of dreams
as my love I silently profess
To my darling princess.

23. It’s All I Have To Bring Today – Emily Dickinson

It’s all I have to bring today—

This, and my heart beside—

This, and my heart, and all the fields—

And all the meadows wide—

Be sure you count—should I forget

Some one the sum could tell—

This, and my heart, and all the Bees

Which in the Clover dwell.

 The wedding day is all about celebrating your love and promising each other a lifetime of togetherness. Head to the next section for poems that are sure to convey your commitment in all sincerity. Be aware! They could be quite the tear-jerkers.

Poems On Marital Devotion

Beautiful poems on marital devotion
Image: Shutterstock

 24. On Your Wedding Day – Anonymous

Today is a day you will always remember

The greatest in anyone’s life

You’ll start off the day just two people in love

And end it as Husband and Wife

It’s a brand new beginning the start of a journey

With moments to cherish and treasure

And although there’ll be times when you both disagree

These will surely be outweighed by pleasure

You’ll have heard many words of advice in the past

When the secrets of marriage were spoken

But you know that the answers lie hidden inside

Where the bond of true love lies unbroken

So live happy forever as lovers and friends

It’s the dawn of a new life for you

As you stand there together with love in your eyes

From the moment you whisper ‘I do’

And with luck, all your hopes, and your dreams can be real

May success find its way to your hearts

Tomorrow can bring you the greatest of joys

But today is the day it all starts.

25. Marriage – Anonymous

Marriage is about giving and taking
And forging and forsaking
Kissing and loving and pushing and shoving
Caring and sharing and screaming and swearing

About being together whatever the weather
About being driven to the end of your tether
About sweetness and kindness
And wisdom and blindness

It’s about being strong when you’re feeling quite weak
It’s about saying nothing when you’re dying to speak
It’s about being wrong when you know you are right
It’s about giving in, before there’s a fight
It’s about you two living as cheaply as one
(you can give us a call if you know how that’s done!)

Never heeding advice that was always well meant
Never counting the cost until it’s all spent
And for you two today it’s about to begin
And for all that the two of you had to put in
Some days filled with joy, and some days with sadness
Too late you’ll discover that marriage is madness.

26. A Good Wedding Cake – Anonymous

4Lb of love
1/2Lb of sweet temper
1Lb of butter of youth
1Lb of blindness of faults
1Lb of pounded wit
1Lb of good humour
2Lbs of sweet argument
1 Pint of rippling laughter
1 Wine glass of common sense
A dash of modesty

Put the love, good looks, and a sweet temper into a well-furnished house.
Beat the butter of youth into a cream and mix well together with the blindness of faults.
Stir the pounded wit and good humour into the sweet argument,
then add the rippling laughter and common sense.
Work the whole together until everything is well mixed and bake gently for ever.

27.  And I Have You – Nikki Giovanni

Rain has drops
Sun has shine
Moon has beams
That make you mine
Rivers have banks
Sands for shores
Hearts have heartbeats
That make me yours
Needles have eyes
Though pins may prick
Elmer has glue
To make things stick
Winter has Spring
Stockings feet
Pepper has mint
To make it sweet
Teachers have lessons
Soup du jour
Lawyers sue bad folks
Doctors cure
All and all
This much is true
You have me
And I have you.

28. The Best Is Yet To Be – Joanna Fuchs

On your joyful wedding day,
You begin a brand new life.
Friends and family give their gifts
To joyful husband, blissful wife.

But the greatest gift you’ll ever get,
A gift from heaven above,
Is love forever, ending never,
Everlasting love.

You’ll share life’s joy and pleasure;
You’ll have plenty of that, it’s true.
But love is the real treasure
For your new spouse and you.

And if life hands you challenges,
As it does to one and all,
Your love will hold you steady
And never let you fall.

Your wedding day is full of joy;
Tomorrow you cannot see.
But one thing’s sure for the two of you:
The best is yet to be.

Groom making vows to bride on their wedding day
Image: Shutterstock

29. Bride’s Vows – Joanna Fuchs

My wonderful (groom’s name),

On our wedding day, I think of all the reasons

I am blessed to be your wife:

You are the joy of my life.

In you I found much more than I ever hoped,

more than I ever dreamed a man could be.

In your arms, I feel happy, safe, protected.

You’re my hero, my defender, my soul mate, my love.

I was born for you.

There was a space in my heart that you fill perfectly.

I fall in love with you again every time I see you.

We are alike, and yet we are different.

Our similarities bond us together,

and our differences keep things interesting.

And no matter what,

you let me be me, just as I am.

I am so grateful for that.

I want to keep discovering you.

I love so many things about you now,

and I know I will find many more to love.

The many little things you to do please me

touch me more than you know.

You see me with your heart,

and you always make me feel beautiful.

This is the beginning

of the rest of our lives together.

We have so much happiness ahead of us,

a lifetime of love,

a lifetime to create wonderful memories.

Nothing matters more than being with you.

I love you; I trust you; I am totally open to you.

Everything that’s woman in me responds to the man in you,

And as we become husband and wife,

I want you to know that there will never be

anyone else for me but you,

my husband, my love, my life.

30. The Art of Marriage – Wilferd A. Peterson

Happiness in marriage is not something that just happens.

A good marriage must be created.

In marriage the little things are the big things. It is never being too old to hold hands.

It is remembering to say “I love you” at least once a day.

It is never going to sleep angry.

It is at no time taking the other for granted;

the courtship should not end with the honeymoon,

it should continue through all the years.

It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating

gratitude in thoughtful ways.

It is not expecting the husband to wear a halo or the wife to have wings of an angel.

It is not looking for perfection in each other.

It is cultivating flexibility, patience, understanding and a sense of humor.

It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.

It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.

It is finding room for the things of the spirit.

It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.
It is establishing a relationship in which the independence is equal,
dependence is mutual and the obligation is reciprocal.

It is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner.

31. Married Love – Kuan Tao-Sheng

You and I
Have so much love,
That it
Burns like a fire,
In which we bake a lump of clay
Molded into a figure of you
And a figure of me.
Then we take both of them,
And break them into pieces,
And mix the pieces with water,
And mold again a figure of you,
And a figure of me.
I am in your clay.
You are in my clay.
In life we share a single quilt.
In death we will share one bed.

Marriage is a celebration of love, tradition, and unity. Wedding poems are a special way to let the couple know how special you feel about them. It makes for a simple yet lovely gesture to express what they mean to you. On their big day, sharing any of the poems above would help you make it memorable for them without much cost or effort. You can also use any of the above ideas to surprise your partner on your special day. Giving words to your feelings through these poems would not only make their big day special but also help strengthen your beautiful relationship further.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do you write in a poem on a wedding card?

You can go about this in a few ways. You can either take inspiration from some of the literary greats or write something romantic, funny, and personal to the both of you.

How do you write a poem for a friend’s wedding?

You can use metaphors or rhymes to write a funny poem for your friend’s wedding. If poetry is not your cup of tea, you can keep it short, simple, and sentimental and just write what is in your heart.

What sort of tone will my Wedding Poem have?

Your wedding poem can have a light-hearted, affectionate, ecstatic, sentimental, or celebratory tone. You may look for a poem that matches your desired tone or even write one on your own.

Nothing beats a stirring poem to express your love. Check this heartwarming wedding poem from the movie Love Actually that will remind you to hug the love of your life!

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