Vol. 08 · Shakespeare ·Hamlet, Act III.i ·Hamlet
"Shuffled off this mortal coil."
Not quite the line.
How it's usually quoted
"Shuffled off this mortal coil."
What Shakespeare actually wrote
"When we have shuffled off this mortal coil." Hamlet — Hamlet, Act III.i
Why it matters
The fragment survives as a euphemism for dying. In the soliloquy it is conditional — "when" — part of Hamlet weighing whether death is an improvement.
More from the canon.
Browse the rest of the shelf, or try a cold reading.