لو كنت معنى بديع اللفظ مخترعا

لو كنت معنى بديع اللفظ مخترعا

لم يقطع السير بي في الأرض ما قطعا

لم يقطع السير بي في الأرض ما قطعا

Had I been a meaning, exquisite in phrasing and newly coined,

Had I been a newly devised conceit, exquisitely worded,

travel would not have borne me across as much of the earth as it has.

Travel would not have carried me as far across the earth as it has.