Fun poems invite enjoyment through lively scenes, unusual ideas, imaginative voices, and words that are satisfying to say aloud. A simple situation can become an adventure when a poet gives it an unexpected turn.
Browse the examples below for the kind of play that appeals to you. Notice how sound, surprise, and pace keep the poem engaging. If writing your own, start with a curious question or an ordinary object and see what happens when it behaves in an extraordinary way.
“Welcome to the jungle”
Where “the lion sleeps tonight”
As the “sun rises over the Serengeti”
and “we have no worries
for the rest of our lives.”
Gasping leaves start falling on the distant hills
Scent of cinnamon and rich harvest prayers
Stir the silence of those gentle dewdrop tears
A voice of praise, the wind sends its chills
Impish squirrels play on the lawn, dancing together
Rhythm of hope gotten in each nut they find
Drifting from limb to limb, just as God designed
Preparing their harvests for the colder weather
As the mountains change from green to brown
Fluttering leaves dance through the frosty morn
We look to skies and see the clouds they’ve worn
Know those graceful leaves will keep falling down
A habit of mine
When Autumn comes
Off I go
Wearing
Boots
Try to discover
What I can find
Looking low
Searching
Roots
In front of my eyes
To my surprise
Standing still
Seeing
Shoots
Music clears the cluttered mind,
Soothes the soul to dance in time.
The rhythm runs to something good,
Forward, back, till understood.
Up on my feet, I make a move,
Left foot over right follows suit.
Hips sway like melody is on its way,
A dance of my own design on display.
Not quite Broadway, our dance hall proved,
My buddies walk up, traumatized by the moves!
Laughing and poking, I turn in surprise,
And see all the humor light up in their eyes.
"Ah hell no, man!" they shout from behind,
"Moves like that are just burned into our minds!
We are only mortal men, not gods of swing,
But damn, you are no good at this thing!"
I smile and I blush, but I feel like I should,
Just moving my feet in the way that I could.
Ribbing and laughing, man, what a day,
I got caught dancin' my shift away.
The woman who lived on the lake
Was always believed to be fake
She'd come in the night
At the first loss of light
Eating a huge chocolate cake
A woman from old London Town
Walked the streets in a beautiful crown
Not a stitch on to wear
Though she'd couffured her hair
But where on earth was her gown?
The woman who lives down the road
Enjoys signing songs to a toad
Her voice is delightful
Her songs are insightful
But it's a weird way to simply offload
There was a young woman from Putney
Who enjoyed making raspberry chutney
The problem she found
As she fell to the ground
Was she was eating nothing but brie
I remember a place
a place of being a child
where being a child was a fun
as eating pizza and playing arcade games.
This was a well know place
every child knew it's name.
For the moment you walked
through the revolving doors
bright lights displayed every game.
There were slide with twists and turns
even a ball pit and the best part was
the childhood memories of all of this.
It must have been a golden age
Before the era of preschool pedagogy
Not inferior, just different
Itty-bitty footprints – completely free
My thoughts were outdoors,
that’s where it all happened
My feet moved always wildly,
jumping and bouncing
School was a thief -
the feeling of having one’s own time stolen
A little knowledge might have been useful
My mind played hopscotch
A Sumerian clown always with
oratorical troublous.
I’m not emotionally evasive.
Don’t admire me from a distance.
Let's not waste time pretending.
Skip the decorative speech of poetry.
What we’re about isn’t moonlight and flowers,
it’s that common-coin of light comedy—sex.
If intimacy is a sequence of permissions,
take what I have—I want you close.
Let’s abandon polite fiction,
get with the friction,
and form a pleasurable, pleasure dependence
.
.
A song for this:
Get Me by Everything But the Girl
All Hallows Eve
A night to receive
The fears you perceive
Whilst you try to deceive
Make them believe
You're not scared
Do you wake each morning with
‘Oh Yay…..another day’
OR
Mumble and complain
Thinking ‘ Here we go again’!
T=Tranquility is what I need,
R=Running from this crazy world.
A=A moment of peace and,
Q=Quiet would be heavenly.
U=Uttering only the birds are singing,
I=I enjoy my bright day.
L=Loving the warm morning sun upon my face,
I=In pajamas I drink my hot,
T=Tea with,
Y=Yellow pretty roses on my mug.
A=As my day starts I,
N=Need peace.
D=Down with noise that hurts my body and soul.
P=Peace from the world is what I long for,
E=Energy from love,
A=Along with nature.
C=Calling my heart to be quiet as this,
E=Energizing world takes over.
Fun Categories
Definition | What is Fun in Poetry?
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.
Related Poetry Forms
enjoyable, pleasant, entertaining, amusing, lively, boisterous, convivial, merry, witty, diverting, enjoyment, joke, celebration, pastime, joy, pleasure, sport, laughter, distraction, picnic, nonsense, gaiety, absurdity, playfulness, entertainment