geoffrey

chaucer

THE BOOK OF THE TALES OF

CANTERBURY

The Book of the Tales of

CANTERBURY

 COMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED

Middle English

and

A Modernised-Spelling Edition

With Tooltip Glossary

by

Joe Clunes

Copyright © 2026 Joe Clunes

All rights reserved. 

The Middle English text of The Canterbury Tales is in the public domain. All original additions, including the modern-spelling edition and glossary, are copyright © 2026 by Joe Clunes and may not be reproduced in any form without written permission, except as permitted by UK copyright law. 

Table of Contents

GROUP
— A —

The Prologue
The Knight’s Tale
The Miller’s Prologue
The Miller’s Tale
The Reeve’s Prologue
The Reeve’s Tale
The Cook’s Prologue
The Cook’s Tale

GROUP
— B —

Introduction to the Man of Law’s Tale
The Man of Law’s Prologue
The Man of Law’s Tale

The Shipman’s Prologue
The Shipman’s Tale
The Shipman’s Epilogue
The Prioress’s Prologue
The Prioress’s Tale
The Prologue to Sir Thopas
Sir Thopas
The Prologue to Melibeus
Melibeus
The Monk’s Prologue
The Monk’s Tale
The Nun’s Priest’s Prologue
The Nun’s Priest’s Tale
The Nun’s Priest’s Epilogue

GROUP
— C —

The Physician’s Tale
The Physician’s Epilogue
The Pardoner’s Prologue
The Pardoner’s Tale

GROUP
— D —

The Wife of Bath’s Prologue
The Wife of Bath’s Tale
The Friar’s Prologue
The Friar’s Tale
The Summoner’s Prologue
The Summoner’s Tale

GROUP
— E —

The Clerk’s Prologue
The Clerk’s Tale
The Merchant’s Prologue
The Merchant’s Tale
The Merchant’s Epilogue

GROUP
— F —

The Squire’s Prologue
The Squire’s Tale
The Squire’s Epilogue
The Franklin’s Prologue
The Franklin’s Tale

GROUP
— G —

The Second Nun’s Prologue
The Second Nun’s Tale
The Canon’s Yeoman’s Prologue
The Canon’s Yeoman’s Tale

GROUP
— H —

The Manciple’s Prologue
The Manciple’s Tale

..

GROUP
— I —

The Parson’s Prologue
The Parson’s Tale
Chaucer’s Retraction

“The single most important precursor for [William Shakespeare] is Geoffrey Chaucer, and it has to do with the creation of character.”

Harold Bloom (1930–2019) 

Sterling Professor of Humanities (Yale University)