1–4Hwenne thin heou bloketh . . . thi tunge voldeth. Compare Death (art. 14), lines 85–87.back to note source
4thi tunge voldeth. “your speech fails.” See MED, folden (v.(2)), sense 2b, which cites this line. Compare The Owl and the Nightingale (art. 2), line 37.back to note source
10bipreoneth. This verb is attested only here; see MED, bipreonen (v.), “to sew (sb.) up.”back to note source
on here. “in a haircloth,” that is, as a gesture of humility and Christian penance. For burial in a coarse cloth, see MED, here (n.(2)), sense 3a, and compare The Saws of Saint Bede (art. 4), line 200.back to note source
11And doth the ine wurmes ivere. Compare Death (art. 14), line 91.back to note source
12Theonne bith hit sone of the al so thu never nere. The final hypermetric line resembles the ending of several Harley lyrics, in particular A Winter Song, lines 17–18 (CHMS, 2:230–31).back to note source