The Scottish tragedy … retold in modern English verse.
The complete Macbeth study guide – every line translated; every rhythm kept; every scene, character and theme explored – free for students, teachers, actors, and theatregoers.
Macbeth Overview
Macbeth Deep Dive
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ACT 1
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 1
Three Witches, a storm, and the name Macbeth
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 1 retold in modern English verse: the Witches plan to meet Macbeth upon the heath.
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 2
Brave Macbeth and the traitor Cawdor
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 2 retold in modern English verse: the Sergeant reports Macbeth's valour and Cawdor falls.
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 3
The prophecy on the heath
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 3 retold in modern English verse: the Witches hail Macbeth as king hereafter.
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 4
The Prince of Cumberland stands in the way
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 4 retold in modern English verse: Duncan names his heir and Macbeth's dark thoughts deepen.
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 5
Lady Macbeth calls on the spirits
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 5 retold in modern English verse: Lady Macbeth reads the letter and plans Duncan's murder.
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 6
A gracious welcome at Inverness
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 6 retold in modern English verse: Duncan admires the castle while his hostess plans his murder.
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Macbeth – Act 1 Scene 7
Macbeth wavers; Lady Macbeth does not
Macbeth Act 1, Scene 7 retold in modern English verse: Macbeth almost abandons the murder until his wife shames him on.
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ACT 2
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Macbeth – Act 2 Scene 1
The vision of the dagger
Macbeth Act 2, Scene 1 retold in modern English verse: a floating dagger leads Macbeth to Duncan's chamber.
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Macbeth – Act 2 Scene 2
Blood on his hands, knocking at the gate
Macbeth Act 2, Scene 2 retold in modern English verse: Macbeth returns from the murder with bloody daggers.
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Macbeth – Act 2 Scene 3
The drunken Porter, and the murder discovered
Macbeth Act 2, Scene 3 retold in modern English verse: Macduff finds the King dead and Duncan's sons flee.
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Macbeth – Act 2 Scene 4
Omens of an unnatural night
Macbeth Act 2, Scene 4 retold in modern English verse: an owl kills a falcon and Macbeth rides to be crowned.
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ACT 3
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Macbeth – Act 3 Scene 1
Murderers hired for Banquo and Fleance
Macbeth Act 3, Scene 1 retold in modern English verse: fearing the prophecy, King Macbeth sets killers on Banquo.
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Macbeth – Act 3 Scene 2
No peace on the throne
Macbeth Act 3, Scene 2 retold in modern English verse: the crown has brought Macbeth terrors instead of rest.
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Macbeth – Act 3 Scene 3
Ambush in the park
Macbeth Act 3, Scene 3 retold in modern English verse: Banquo is murdered by torchlight but Fleance escapes.
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Macbeth – Act 3 Scene 4
A ghost at the banquet
Macbeth Act 3, Scene 4 retold in modern English verse: Banquo's ghost takes Macbeth's seat and wrecks the feast.
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Macbeth – Act 3 Scene 5
Hecate takes charge
Macbeth Act 3, Scene 5 retold in modern English verse: the mistress of the Witches plans Macbeth's ruin by illusion. -
Macbeth – Act 3 Scene 6
Scotland whispers against the tyrant
Macbeth Act 3, Scene 6 retold in modern English verse: Lennox talks in careful riddles while Macduff seeks English aid.
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ACT 4
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Macbeth – Act 4 Scene 1
The cauldron and the apparitions
Macbeth Act 4, Scene 1 retold in modern English verse: the apparitions give Macbeth prophecies of false comfort.
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Macbeth – Act 4 Scene 2
Murder at Macduff's castle
Macbeth Act 4, Scene 2 retold in modern English verse: Lady Macduff and her son pay the price of Macduff's flight.
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Macbeth – Act 4 Scene 3
Malcolm tests Macduff
Macbeth Act 4, Scene 3 retold in modern English verse: Malcolm proves Macduff true as news of the slaughter arrives.
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ACT 5
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 1
The sleepwalking Queen
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 1 retold in modern English verse: Lady Macbeth relives the murders in her sleep.
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 2
The thanes march to Birnam
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 2 retold in modern English verse: the Scottish lords ride to join Malcolm's English army.
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 3
Macbeth arms for the siege
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 3 retold in modern English verse: Macbeth clings to the prophecies as the English power nears.
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 4
Birnam wood begins to move
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 4 retold in modern English verse: every soldier cuts a bough and the forest marches on Dunsinane.
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 5
The Queen is dead, and the wood is moving
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 5 retold in modern English verse: Macbeth hears of his wife's death as the prophecy unravels.
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 6
Throw down the leafy screens
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 6 retold in modern English verse: the camouflage falls and the assault on Dunsinane begins. -
Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 7
Macbeth at bay
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 7 retold in modern English verse: Macbeth kills Young Siward while Macduff hunts him down.
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Macbeth – Act 5 Scene 8
The tyrant falls
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 8 retold in modern English verse: Macduff reveals his birth, Macbeth dies, Malcolm is crowned.
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Frequently asked questions about Macbeth
What is Macbeth about?
Macbeth is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy, written around 1606. It follows Macbeth, a celebrated Scottish general, who is told by three witches that he will become King of Scotland. Urged on by Lady Macbeth, he murders King Duncan and seizes the crown – then, to keep it, kills again and again, descending into tyranny and sleepless guilt. The play ends with Lady Macbeth dead by her own hand and Macbeth killed in battle by Macduff, as Duncan's son Malcolm restores rightful rule.
When was Macbeth written?
Macbeth was written around 1606, early in the reign of James I – a Scottish king with a documented fascination with witchcraft – and the play speaks directly to him: Banquo, Macbeth's fellow general, was believed to be an ancestor of the Stuart line. It also carries echoes of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, most clearly in the Porter's talk of equivocation. Macbeth was first printed in the First Folio of 1623, which remains the only authoritative text.
What genre is Macbeth?
Macbeth is a tragedy – specifically a tragedy of ambition, in which the hero is destroyed not by outside forces but by his own choices and their consequences. It is the shortest and fastest-moving of Shakespeare's four great tragedies, and its witches, apparitions and prophecies fold the Jacobean fascination with the supernatural into the tragic structure – leaving audiences to argue ever since whether fate or free will destroys Macbeth.
Why is Macbeth called 'the Scottish play'?
Theatrical superstition: many actors believe that speaking the name 'Macbeth' inside a theatre brings bad luck, so they substitute 'the Scottish play' instead. The tradition's origins are murky – a long legend of accidents and failed productions – but it is still observed in earnest in professional theatres today. The nickname is also simply accurate: the play is set almost entirely in Scotland and was written for a newly crowned Scottish king.
What level is Macbeth studied at?
Macbeth is one of the most widely set Shakespeare plays at GCSE, and it also appears at A-Level (UK), AP English Literature (US), the IB Diploma, and on undergraduate Shakespeare courses worldwide. Selected scenes – the witches, the dagger soliloquy, the sleepwalking scene – are frequently studied at Key Stage 3 too. This study guide is written to support all of these levels, with modern English translation, scene-by-scene analysis, character profiles, theme guides, and key quotes.
What are the most famous lines in Macbeth?
Macbeth is dense with famous lines for so short a play. Among the most quoted: "Is this a dagger which I see before me", "Fair is foul, and foul is fair", "Double, double toil and trouble", "Out, damned spot! Out, I say!", "Something wicked this way comes", and "To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow". Each is analysed in depth on the key quotes page.