مَعنُ يا مَعنُ يا اِبنَ زائِدَةِ الكَل

بِ الَّتي في الذِراعِ لا في البَنانِ

Ma'n, O Ma'n, O son of Za'ida the unwise,

With hers who is slender of arm, not full breasted,

لا تُفاخِر إِذا فَخَرتَ بِآبا

ئِكَ وَاِفخَر بِعَمِّكَ الحَوفَزانِ

Do not boast when you pride yourself on your fathers,

Rather pride yourself on your uncle al-Hawfazan.

فَهِشامٌ مِن وائِلٍ في مَكانٍ

أَنتَ تَرضى بِدونِ ذاكَ المَكانِ

For Hisham is of Wail in an exalted place,

While you consent to be less than he in station.

وَمَتى كُنتَ يا اِبنَ ظَبيَةَ تَرجو

أَن تُبَنّي عَلى اِبنَةِ الغَضبانِ

And when were you, O son of Dhabi'a, ever hoping

To wed the daughter of the angry tyrant?

هِيَ حَوراءُ كَالمَهاةِ هِجانٌ

لِهِجانٍ وَأَنتَ غَيرُ هِجانِ

She is a maiden like the wild onager, a filly

Too fierce for one not fierce as the onager.

وَبَناتُ السَليلِ عِندَ بَني ظَب

يَةَ أُفٍّ لَكُم بَني شَيبانِ

And the daughters of Salil are in the eyes of Banu

Dhabi'a but wind eggs, O Banu Shayban!

قيلَ مَعنٌ لَنا فَلَمّا اِختَبَرنا

كانَ مَرعىً وَلَيسَ كَالسَعدانِ

They said, "Ma'n is ours," but when we tested him

He was but pasturage, no rain like Sa'dan's.