Chinese Poems About Missing Someone

Longing is one of the richest themes in Chinese poetry. These verified lines range from quiet affection to the ache of distance.

I miss you we are far apart I keep thinking about someone

Original lines

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3 curated lines

✓ Verified sourceBilingual

独在异乡为异客，每逢佳节倍思亲。

Dú zài yì xiāng wéi yì kè, měi féng jiā jié bèi sī qīn.

Close English reading

Alone in a foreign place, I am a stranger; at every festival, I miss my family all the more.

Plain meaningBeing far from home makes special days feel even lonelier.

SourceWang Wei · Tang dynasty · Thinking of My Brothers East of the Mountains on the Ninth Day of the Ninth Month
Complete Tang Poems

Why it fitsIt directly connects distance, festival time, loneliness, and longing for family.

Original context and translation note

遥知兄弟登高处，遍插茱萸少一人。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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✓ Verified sourceBilingual

海内存知己，天涯若比邻。

Hǎi nèi cún zhī jǐ, tiān yá ruò bǐ lín.

Close English reading

If one has a true friend within the four seas, even the edge of the world feels like next door.

Plain meaningTrue friends remain close, however far apart they are.

SourceWang Bo · Tang dynasty · Farewell to Vice-Prefect Du, Leaving for Shuzhou
Complete Tang Poems

Why it fitsOne of the clearest classical Chinese expressions of friendship surviving distance.

Original context and translation note

与君离别意，同是宦游人。

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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✓ Verified sourceBilingual

青青子衿，悠悠我心。

Qīng qīng zǐ jīn, yōu yōu wǒ xīn.

Close English reading

Green, green is your collar; long, long is the yearning in my heart.

Plain meaningYou stay on my mind, and my longing does not fade.

SourceAnonymous · Pre-Qin China · Zi Jin (The Blue Collar)
The Book of Songs

Why it fitsA compact expression of sustained longing for someone who is absent or silent.

Original context and translation note

纵我不往，子宁不嗣音？

The collar identifies the person being longed for; the repeated words make the feeling linger.

English wording on Gu Ren Said is an original reading aid, not a claim that there is only one valid literary translation.

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Translation note: These English readings are original explanations prepared for Gu Ren Said. The Chinese original and source are the authoritative objects being verified; literary translations can reasonably differ.

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