Arts & Sciences
Riddle XLVII. A Bookworm
Translated by Cosette Faust Newton & Stith Thompson (1918) · From Exeter Book Riddles (selection)
A moth ate a word. To me that seemed
A curious happening when I heard of that wonder,
That a worm should swallow the word of a man,
A thief in the dark eat a thoughtful discourse
And the strong base it stood on. He stole, but he was not
A whit the wiser when the word had been swallowed.
Codex Note
One of roughly ninety riddles preserved in the Exeter Book; this is one of a small selection translated by Faust & Thompson. The manuscript gives no solutions — titles here follow the translators' own guesses.
Cite this poem
MLA
Anonymous (Old English). “Riddle XLVII. A Bookworm.” Translated by Cosette Faust Newton and Stith Thompson. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-old-english/28/.
Chicago
Anonymous (Old English). “Riddle XLVII. A Bookworm.” Translated by Cosette Faust Newton and Stith Thompson. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-old-english/28/.
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