Short verses for memorial cards

How many words fit on a memorial card

A standard prayer card or memorial card is 2.5 by 4.25 inches. Leave a quarter inch of safe margin on every side and the printable area is about 2 by 3.75 inches. That space also holds the name, the dates and sometimes a small cross or line between them.

At 10 or 11 point type, which is the smallest most older guests can read comfortably, that leaves room for roughly 40 to 60 words of verse. In practice:

• Under 25 words sits comfortably with plenty of space, even in a script font.
• 25 to 45 words is the usual range for a card back, and many of the verses on this page fall here.
• 45 to 60 words fits, but use a plain font and keep the name and dates compact.
• Over 60 words usually means shrinking the type below what people can read. Choose a shorter verse, or put the longer one on the funeral program instead.

Verse with short lines takes more height than the same words set as prose, so a six-line poem can fill the card even at 35 words. Try your verse in the prayer card template before you print. The editor shrinks the text to fit and warns you when it gets too small.

Short Bible verses for memorial cards

These are from the King James Version, which is in the public domain. If your church uses another translation, ask the priest or pastor before you print, since the wording will differ.

The priestly blessing, at 30 words, is one of the most used verses on prayer cards. It works for any Christian or Jewish family.

A good fit after a long illness. At 35 words it leaves room for a full name and dates.

Many cards drop the opening words and begin at “I am the resurrection.” The verse ends mid-sentence in the King James text, so some families end it with a period.

Sixteen words, and a common choice for a veteran or for someone who lived with a long illness.

Isaiah 40:31 suits someone who was frail or ill at the end. At 32 words it sits easily under a name and dates.

This is the second half of the verse. On a card, capitalize the first word: “Weeping may endure for a night.”

Traditional Irish and Catholic verses

These blessings and prayers have been passed down for generations and have no single author, so they are free to print. Wording varies from family to family and parish to parish. Use the one you grew up with. The first card is the familiar Irish road blessing. The next two give the Irish words often said for the dead, with the English meaning. The rest are traditional Catholic prayers for the dead, in versions for him and her.

The road blessing runs to about 45 words, near the top of what a card holds. If space is tight, end it after “the palm of His hand” and leave out the line about the fields.

Short poems in the public domain

These lines come from poems published long before 1929. A few are excerpts: two or four lines that people have printed on their own for generations.

Landor wrote these four lines late in his long life. They suit someone who died old and content.

These eleven words fit a religious or non-religious card, and they are a common headstone inscription.

Tennyson wrote In Memoriam over many years after the death of his closest friend. This stanza suits a card from a husband, wife or partner.

Frost’s 1923 poem is now in the public domain in the US. The last stanza is 25 words and suits someone who loved the outdoors or who worked hard for other people right to the end. The full poem is on our funeral poems for dad page.

It runs to seven lines but only 34 words, so it fits a card set in a plain font. It suits a nurse, a volunteer, or anyone who spent their life looking after people.

Original short verses

These were written for this site, and you are welcome to print them. Change a word if it helps the verse sound like the person.

Non-religious

Faith

For a parent or grandparent

For a husband, wife or partner

For a friend or someone who loved the sea

“Fair winds and following seas” is an old sailor’s farewell, still used at Navy and Coast Guard services.

For longer verses about a particular person, see funeral poems for dad, funeral poems for mom and funeral poems for grandma.

Choosing a verse for the person

Most families pick a card verse in a few minutes at the funeral home, and that’s fine. If you have a little more time, these questions help:

• Did they have a favorite verse or saying? Look in their Bible, their wallet, the front of their recipe book or a card they kept. A line they chose themselves is a natural choice for their card.
• What was their faith? A Catholic parish will expect “Eternal rest” or a traditional prayer. A Protestant church often uses a psalm or a verse from John. For a family with no faith or mixed beliefs, Campbell’s two lines or one of the original verses above work for everyone.
• How did they die? After a long illness, Revelation 21:4 or Isaiah 40:31 speak to the end of pain. After a sudden death, Matthew 5:4 is gentle and short.
• Who will keep the card? Many people tuck memorial cards into a Bible or a wallet for years. A verse that sounds like the person tends to be the one they keep.

If a parent or grandparent died, the poems on their own pages include short verses written for each relationship. Several of those fit a card as well.

Verses you’ll see on cards that are still under copyright

Some of the most familiar memorial card verses are newer than they look, and some rights holders actively enforce their copyright. These include “Do not stand at my grave and weep,” “Footprints in the Sand,” “Miss Me But Let Me Go,” “Afterglow” and “The Dash.” A family printing a hundred cards is publishing the verse, so check with the rights holder before you use one. Our funeral poems page describes several of them and where to find them.

If you’re unsure about a verse, search for the poet’s name and the year it was first published. On this site we print a poem in full only when it was published before 1929, or when it is scripture or traditional. A verse with no clear source is safer left off the card.

Laying out a verse on the card

• Keep the order simple. Name at the top, dates under it, then the verse, then anything else, like the funeral home or “In loving memory.”
• Center short verses. Two to four lines look good centered. Longer verses read more easily left-aligned.
• Use one font for the verse. A script font is fine for the name, but set the verse in something plain so older guests can read it.
• Credit the source in small type. “Psalm 4:8” or “Thomas Campbell” under the verse is enough. Original verses from this page don’t need a credit.
• Proofread the dates twice. Have someone who didn’t type them check them against the obituary.

When you are ready, choose a design from the prayer card template page, or browse funeral prayer cards and memorial card templates for other layouts. Every design prints six cards to a sheet at home or goes to a print shop with bleed.