Poems about feelings put a name to what is hard to say out loud. This collection is grouped by emotion, so you can go straight to the one you feel: happiness, sadness, anger, fear, love or hope. Each section has a short original poem and two classic poems, with one line on what each is about. For heavier emotions, see our sad poems collection.
The classic poems were all published in 1930 or earlier and can be read in full in any anthology. We quote only their opening lines.
Poems about happiness
Saturday
Original poem by Poetry Valley
No alarm. The light comes in
the way it does when nobody's late for anything.
Toast, the radio low,
the cat deciding the sunny chair is hers.
I don't need a reason.
I just notice, for once,
that I'm already where I wanted to be.
Happiness here is quiet: not a big event, just noticing an ordinary morning.
- I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth (1807). Opens: “I wandered lonely as a cloud” A field of daffodils lifts the poet’s mood, and the memory keeps cheering him long afterwards.
- Pied Beauty by Gerard Manley Hopkins (written 1877, published 1918). Opens: “Glory be to God for dappled things –” A burst of joy at everything spotted, freckled and imperfect in the world.
Poems about sadness
Low Tide
Original poem by Poetry Valley
Some days the sadness doesn't crash,
it just goes out, slowly,
and leaves everything I own
lying wet on the sand.
I walk among it,
picking up what still shines.
Sadness as a tide going out: slow, exposing, but leaving something worth keeping.
- The Rainy Day by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1842). Opens: “The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;” A gloomy day mirrors the poet’s mood, and he reminds himself that “into each life some rain must fall.”
- There Will Come Soft Rains by Sara Teasdale (1920). Opens: “There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground,” Written during World War I, it imagines nature carrying on calmly after people are gone.
For more, read sad poems that will make you cry or deep sad poems with meaning.
Poems about anger
Kettle
Original poem by Poetry Valley
I held it in all afternoon,
lid on, flame low,
telling myself it wasn't boiling.
By evening the whole house could hear it.
Next time, I promise,
I'll lift the lid while it's only steam.
Anger that is bottled up gets louder, not quieter. The speaker learns to let it out early.
- A Poison Tree by William Blake (1794). Opens: “I was angry with my friend;” Anger spoken aloud fades, but anger kept secret grows into a poisoned apple that destroys an enemy.
- If We Must Die by Claude McKay (1919). Opens: “If we must die, let it not be like hogs” Written after the racial violence of 1919, it turns righteous anger into a call for courage and dignity.
Poems about fear and worry
Waiting Room
Original poem by Poetry Valley
The clock on the wall is louder here.
Every name they call is someone else's,
and every someone else's
is a small reprieve I'm ashamed to feel.
I read the same line in the same magazine.
I practice my face for good news.
Worry stretches time. The speaker is honest about the small, guilty relief of not being called yet.
- When I have fears that I may cease to be by John Keats (written 1818, published 1848). Opens: “When I have fears that I may cease to be” A young poet fears dying before he can write everything in his head or love fully.
- Up-Hill by Christina Rossetti (1862). Opens: “Does the road wind up-hill all the way?” A nervous traveler asks question after question about a hard road, and is gently reassured there will be rest at the end.
Poems about love
Directions
Original poem by Poetry Valley
You never learned the way to my house.
Every time, you call from the corner:
left at the bakery? right at the light?
I talk you in, street by street,
and wouldn't change it,
because for those five minutes
you're coming toward me and saying so.
Love found in a small, repeated habit rather than a grand gesture.
- Sonnet 43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1850). Opens: “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” Probably the best-known love poem in English, listing every depth and kind of love she feels.
- A Red, Red Rose by Robert Burns (1794). Opens: “O my Luve is like a red, red rose” A song-like promise to love “till a’ the seas gang dry.”
Poems about hope
Seed Packet
Original poem by Poetry Valley
The picture on the front is a lie, of course:
no garden looks like that in March.
But I buy it anyway,
and push the small dry promise into the dirt,
and water a patch of nothing
because I believe it.
Hope as an action: doing the work before there is any proof it will pay off.
- “Hope” is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson (written c. 1861, published 1891). Opens: “”Hope” is the thing with feathers –” Hope is a small bird that sings through every storm and never asks for anything in return.
- Invictus by William Ernest Henley (1888). Opens: “Out of the night that covers me,” Written while the poet faced serious illness, it ends with the famous line “I am the captain of my soul.”
How to write a poem about your feelings
Start with one emotion, not five. Then find an object or moment that holds it, the way these poems use a kettle, a seed packet or a waiting-room clock. Describe that thing clearly and let the reader feel the emotion without naming it. If you need a starting point, try our poem ideas or poetry prompts.
Frequently asked questions
What is an emotional poem?
An emotional poem is one whose main purpose is to express or create a feeling in the reader, such as joy, grief, anger or love. The strongest ones show the feeling through images instead of simply naming it.
What is a good short poem about feelings?
Emily Dickinson’s “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers” is short, easy to memorize and one of the most loved poems about an emotion.
If difficult feelings are becoming too much, you can call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US), any time.
