Lines 1-4

In the opening line of "Whoso List to Hunt," the speaker reveals that for those eager to hunt, he knows of a specific hind, a female deer. However, the speaker himself is attempting to give up the chase, admitting in line 2 that this hind is out of his reach. He is "wearied" from the "vain travail," the futile effort, of the hunt and has started to see the uselessness of the pursuit. In the fourth line, he expresses regret at being the last of the hunters, the one who "that farthest cometh behind."

Lines 5-8

In the second stanza, the speaker confesses that he cannot free his "wearied mind … from the deer." Even as she runs away, he admits, "Fainting I follow." Ultimately, he is compelled to give up the chase, as she is too swift, and all he manages to catch is the wind stirred by her passing. In summary, the first eight lines, or the octave, articulate the issue of the speaker's futile hunt.

Lines 9-14

In the concluding sestet, the initial invitation extended by the speaker to those interested in pursuing this particular hind is partially retracted; in line 9, he clarifies that he will dispel any doubt about the wisdom of doing so. Just as his pursuit was fruitless, so would be the efforts of other hunters, as the hind wears a diamond collar indicating her belonging to another. The final couplet reveals that the collar reads "Noli me tangere," or "Touch me not" in Latin. The first part of the warning is "Touch me not, for Caesar's I am." According to legend, long after the Roman emperor Caesar's death, white stags were discovered wearing collars inscribed with "Noli me tangere; Caesaris sum," meaning "Touch me not; I am Caesar's." The phrase "Noli me tangere," is also a citation from the Vulgate Bible, in John 20:17, where Christ tells Mary Magdalene, "Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father." In the final line, the warning on the collar continues: the deer herself asserts that while she may seem tame, holding her is perilous, as she is wild.