وأغيدٍ قلنا لها هاتِها

وأغيدٍ قلنا لها هاتِها

فقالَ ما هاتِ ومعناها

فقالَ ما هاتِ ومعناها

And a graceful youth—we said to her, “Give it here.”

We said to her, "Give it to us,"

Then he said, “What is ‘give,’ and what does it mean?”

But she said "What give? What's its meaning?"

كأنما ليسَ لنا أضلعٌ

كأنما ليسَ لنا أضلعٌ

على هواهُ قد طويناها

على هواهُ قد طويناها

As though we had no ribs

As if we had no ribs

That we had folded around our love for him,

That we bent to her love,

ولم تكنْ في خدِّهِ وردةٌ

ولم تكنْ في خدِّهِ وردةٌ

تزيدُ حسناً إن قطفناها

تزيدُ حسناً إن قطفناها

And there were no rose upon his cheek

No rose was on her cheek

That would grow lovelier if we plucked it.

That gained more beauty if we plucked it.

قلنا لهُ تلكَ إذنْ قبلةٌ

قلنا لهُ تلكَ إذنْ قبلةٌ

كلُّ محبّ قد تمناها

كلُّ محبّ قد تمناها

We said to him, “That, then, is a kiss

We said to him, "It's a kiss then -

That every lover has wished for.”

Every lover has wished for it."

فلم يزلْ يمنعنا خدَهُ

فلم يزلْ يمنعنا خدَهُ

ولم تزلْ حتى أخذناها

ولم تزلْ حتى أخذناها

So he kept withholding his cheek from us,

Yet he kept refusing us his cheek

And it did not vanish until we took it.

Until we finally took it.