ROSALIND. But are you so much in love as your rhymes speak?
ORLANDO. Neither rhyme nor reason can express so much. (As You Like It act 3, sc. 2)
Tips for Use. “Neither rhyme nor reason…”, one of the many turns of phrase that have filtered down in every day’s English language. In the instance, one of the many answers Shakespeare offers to the eternal (actually one of the eternal) questions in matters of the heart, namely “How much do you love me?”, “Neither rhyme nor reason can express how much.”…
Of course, the expression is also applicable (as it is in normal parlance) to emphasize the lack of rational explanations for an actual or hypothetical course of action. E.G. “I see no rhyme nor reason for doing this…” or similar.
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In the play. Rosalind (in disguise as a boy) exchanges some banter with Orlando. Inevitably Orlando will marry Rosalind and they will live happily thereafter.