The opening four lines are about young women, typically unmarried, whom the addressee may court. The remainder of the poem, the part used by Reger, seems to deal with wives tormenting their husbands who can no longer escape.

There is a logic behind this combination: a fickle courtee is more likely to become a dominant wife. A power game.

In popular poetry, a henpecked husband is considered fair game for taunting, as implied in this poem. A female counterpart would be entitled to sympathy.