| Play | Key Line | Modern Text | Original Text |
| All's Well That Ends Well | AW I.iii.196 | I know I love in vain, strive against hope, | I know I loue in vaine, striue against hope: |
| All's Well That Ends Well | AW III.iv.25.1 | Pursuit would be but vain. | Pursuite would be but vaine. |
| All's Well That Ends Well | AW IV.ii.51.1 | Against your vain assault. | Against your vaine assault. |
| The Comedy of Errors | CE III.ii.27 | 'Tis holy sport to be a little vain | 'Tis holy sport to be a little vaine, |
| The Comedy of Errors | CE III.ii.188 | But this I think: there's no man is so vain | But this I thinke, there's no man is so vaine, |
| Coriolanus | Cor V.i.71 | So that all hope is vain | So that all hope is vaine, |
| Hamlet | Ham I.i.147 | And our vain blows malicious mockery. | And our vaine blowes, malicious Mockery. |
| Henry IV Part 1 | 1H4 II.iv.384 | Weep not, sweet Queen, for trickling tears are vain. | Weepe not, sweet Queene, for trickling teares are vaine. |
| Henry IV Part 1 | 1H4 III.ii.67 | Of every beardless vain comparative, | Of euery Beardlesse vaine Comparatiue; |
| Henry IV Part 2 | 2H4 II.iii.14 | Bring up his powers. But he did long in vain. | Bring vp his Powres: but he did long in vaine. |
| Henry IV Part 2 | 2H4 IV.v.172 | If any rebel or vain spirit of mine | If any Rebell, or vaine spirit of mine, |
| Henry IV Part 2 | 2H4 V.v.46 | vain man. | vaine man. |
| Henry V | H5 I.i.54 | Since his addiction was to courses vain, | Since his addiction was to Courses vaine, |
| Henry V | H5 II.iv.28 | By a vain, giddy, shallow, humorous youth, | By a vaine giddie shallow humorous Youth, |
| Henry V | H5 III.iii.24 | We may as bootless spend our vain command | We may as bootlesse spend our vaine Command |
| Henry VI Part 1 | 1H6 V.iv.85 | Use no entreaty, for it is in vain. | Vse no intreaty, for it is in vaine. |
| Henry VI Part 2 | 2H6 II.i.142 | go about to torture me in vain. | You goe about to torture me in vaine. |
| Henry VI Part 2 | 2H6 III.ii.146 | But all in vain are these mean obsequies, | But all in vaine are these meane Obsequies, |
| Henry VI Part 2 | 2H6 IV.i.77 | Against the senseless winds shalt grin in vain, | Against the senselesse windes shall grin in vaine, |
| Henry VI Part 2 | 2H6 IV.i.92 | Whose dreadful swords were never drawn in vain, | Whose dreadfull swords were neuer drawne in vaine, |
| Henry VI Part 3 | 3H6 I.ii.27 | Your oath, my lord, is vain and frivolous. | Your Oath, my Lord, is vaine and friuolous. |
| Henry VI Part 3 | 3H6 I.iii.21 | In vain thou speakest, poor boy; my father's blood | In vaine thou speak'st, poore Boy: / My Fathers blood |
| Henry VI Part 3 | 3H6 II.i.134 | But all in vain; they had no heart to fight, | But all in vaine, they had no heart to fight, |
| Henry VIII | H8 I.ii.147 | By a vain prophecy of Nicholas Henton. | By a vaine Prophesie of Nicholas Henton. |
| Henry VIII | H8 III.ii.365 | Vain pomp and glory of this world, I hate ye. | Vaine pompe, and glory of this World, I hate ye, |
| King Edward III | E3 I.ii.1 | Alas, how much in vain my poor eyes gaze | Alas how much in vaine my poore eyes gaze, |
| King Edward III | E3 II.ii.195 | The vain endeavour of so many pens; | The vaine indeuor of so many pens: |
| King Edward III | E3 III.i.180 | But all in vain. Both sun, the wind, and tide | But all in vaine, both Sunne, the Wine and tyde, |
| King Edward III | E3 III.iv.45 | But all in vain, he cannot free himself. | But all in vaine, he cannot free him selfe. |
| King John | KJ III.i.8 | Is but the vain breath of a common man. | Is but the vaine breath of a common man: |
| King Lear | KL I.i.161.1 | Thou swear'st thy gods in vain. | Thou swear.st thy Gods in vaine. |
| King Lear | KL IV.ii.61.2 | O vain fool! | Oh vaine Foole. |
| King Lear | KL V.iii.291 | He knows not what he sees, and vain is it | He knowes not what he saies, and vaine is it |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL I.i.71 | And train our intellects to vain delight. | And traine our intellects to vaine delight. |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL I.i.72 | Why, all delights are vain, but that most vain | Why? all delights are vaine, and that most vaine |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL I.i.137 | Therefore this article is made in vain, | Therefore this Article is made in vaine, |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL I.i.164 | One who the music of his own vain tongue | One, who the musicke of his owne vaine tongue, |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL IV.ii.30 | For as it would ill become me to be vain, indiscreet, or a fool, | For as it would ill become me to be vaine, indiscreet, or a foole; |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL V.i.12 | behaviour vain, ridiculous, and thrasonical. He is too | behauiour vaine, ridiculous, and thrasonicall. He is too |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL V.ii.207 | O vain petitioner, beg a greater matter! | O vaine peticioner, beg a greater matter, |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL V.ii.527 | too, too vain; too, too vain; but we will put it, as they | Too too vaine, too too vaine. But we wil put it (as they |
| Love's Labour's Lost | LLL V.ii.756 | All wanton as a child, skipping and vain, | All wanton as a childe, skipping and vaine. |
| Measure for Measure | MM I.iv.48.1 | By vain though apt affection. | By vaine, though apt affection. |
| Measure for Measure | MM II.iv.12 | Which the air beats for vain. O place, O form, | Which the ayre beats for vaine: oh place, oh forme, |
| Measure for Measure | MM III.i.195 | him, I will open my lips in vain, or discover his | him, I will open my lips in vaine, or discouer his |
| Measure for Measure | MM IV.i.6 | Seals of love, but sealed in vain, sealed in vain. | Seales of loue, but seal'd in vaine, seal'd in vaine. |
| A Midsummer Night's Dream | MND II.i.88 | Therefore the winds, piping to us in vain, | Therefore the Windes, piping to vs in vaine, |
| A Midsummer Night's Dream | MND II.i.93 | The ox hath therefore stretched his yoke in vain, | The Oxe hath therefore stretch'd his yoake in vaine, |
| Othello | Oth III.iii.467 | Not with vain thanks, but with acceptance bounteous; | Not with vaine thanks, but with acceptance bounteous, |
| Othello | Oth V.ii.262 | Than twenty times your stop. but, O vain boast! – | Then twenty times your stop. But (oh vaine boast) |
| Pericles | Per V.i.38 | It is in vain. He will not speak to you. | It is in vaine, he will not speake to you. |
| Richard II | R2 II.i.4 | For all in vain comes counsel to his ear. | For all in vaine comes counsell to his eare. |
| Richard II | R2 II.i.7 | Where words are scarce they are seldom spent in vain, | Where words are scarse, they are seldome spent in vaine, |
| Richard II | R2 II.ii.141 | Farewell. If heart's presages be not vain, | Farewell, if hearts presages be not vaine, |
| Richard II | R2 III.ii.166 | Infusing him with self and vain conceit, | Infusing him with selfe and vaine conceit, |
| Richard II | R2 III.ii.214 | To alter this; for counsel is but vain. | To alter this, for counsaile is but vaine. |
| Richard II | R2 V.v.19 | Unlikely wonders – how these vain weak nails | Vnlikely wonders; how these vaine weake nailes |
| Richard III | R3 I.iii.240 | Poor painted queen, vain flourish of my fortune! | Poore painted Queen, vain flourish of my fortune, |
| Richard III | R3 IV.iv.82 | I called thee then vain flourish of my fortune; | I call'd thee then, vaine flourish of my fortune: |
| Romeo and Juliet | RJ I.iv.45 | We waste our lights in vain, like lamps by day. | We wast our lights in vaine, lights, lights, by day; |
| Romeo and Juliet | RJ I.iv.98 | Begot of nothing but vain fantasy; | Begot of nothing, but vaine phantasie, |
| Romeo and Juliet | RJ II.i.41.2 | Go then, for 'tis in vain | Go then, for 'tis in vaine |
| The Tempest | Tem IV.i.97 | Till Hymen's torch be lighted: but in vain. | Till Hymens Torch be lighted: but in vaine, |
| Timon of Athens | Tim I.i.132.1 | Myself have spoke in vain. | My selfe haue spoke in vaine. |
| Timon of Athens | Tim III.v.60.1 | You breathe in vain. | You breath in vaine. |
| Timon of Athens | Tim III.v.60.2 | In vain? His service done | In vaine? |
| Timon of Athens | Tim V.i.114 | It is in vain that you would speak with Timon; | It is vaine that you would speake with Timon: |
| Timon of Athens | Tim V.i.182.2 | Stay not, all's in vain. | Stay not, all's in vaine. |
| Timon of Athens | Tim V.i.188.2 | We speak in vain. | We speake in vaine. |
| Titus Andronicus | Tit I.i.443 | Lose not so noble a friend on vain suppose, | Loose not so noble a friend on vaine suppose, |
| Titus Andronicus | Tit I.i.458 | Kneel in the streets and beg for grace in vain. | Kneele in the streetes, and beg for grace in vaine. |
| Titus Andronicus | Tit II.iii.163 | Remember, boys, I poured forth tears in vain | Remember Boyes I powr'd forth teares in vaine, |
| Titus Andronicus | Tit III.i.27 | O noble father, you lament in vain: | Oh noble father, you lament in vaine, |
| Titus Andronicus | Tit III.i.73 | For they have fought for Rome, and all in vain, | For they haue fought for Rome, and all in vaine: |
| Titus Andronicus | Tit III.i.80 | For hands to do Rome service is but vain. | For hands to do Rome seruice, is but vaine. |
| Twelfth Night | TN IV.ii.97 | thy vain bibble-babble. | thy vaine bibble babble. |
| The Two Gentlemen of Verona | TG III.i.168 | Be gone; I will not hear thy vain excuse, | Be gone, I will not heare thy vaine excuse, |
| The Two Gentlemen of Verona | TG IV.iii.17 | Vain Thurio, whom my very soul abhors. | Vaine Thurio (whom my very soule abhor'd.) |
| The Two Noble Kinsmen | TNK III.iii.10 | No more of these vain parleys; let us not, | No more of these vaine parlies; let us not |
| The Two Noble Kinsmen | TNK epilogue.9 | Our market. 'Tis in vain, I see, to stay ye. | Our Market: Tis in vaine, I see to stay yee, |
| The Winter's Tale | WT II.i.109 | Commonly are; the want of which vain dew | Commonly are) the want of which vaine dew |
| The Winter's Tale | WT V.iii.140 | As I thought, dead; and have in vain said many | (As I thought) dead: and haue (in vaine) said many |