Oh Mother — Nursery Rhyme Lyrics

Oh, Mother, Oh, Mother,
Come quickly and see,
The house and the farmyard
Have gone on a spree.
The pig's in the pantry,
The chickens are out,
The parrot is perched
On the tea kettle spout.
And mercy, Oh, mercy,
Oh, what shall I do?
A rat has run off
With my very best shoe.

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Learning from "Oh Mother"

Nursery rhymes are some of the best teachers of rhythm and rhyme. "Oh Mother" uses 12 lines to create a memorable verse — proof that effective poetry doesn't need to be long. Pay attention to the meter: the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables is what makes the rhyme stick in your head.

Songwriters and poets can borrow these patterns. Try writing your own lyrics using the same rhyme scheme and line length as this nursery rhyme. You can also use words from the poem above as starting points — click any word to find rhymes or look up its definition, then build from there.

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Frequently asked questions

What are the words to Oh Mother?
The lyrics to Oh Mother are: Oh, Mother, Oh, Mother, / Come quickly and see, / The house and the farmyard / Have gone on a spree. / The pig's in the pantry, / The chickens are out, ... Read the full 12-line nursery rhyme at Rhyme Buster.
How many lines does Oh Mother have?
"Oh Mother" has 12 lines of verse.

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