Cherries Are Ripe Lyrics
The cherries are ripe, but baby cannot have any yet: they are too sour, and baby is too little. By and by, baked in a pie, baby will get some.
Cherries Are Ripe
Cherries are ripe, cherries are ripe,
Give the baby some;
Cherries are ripe, cherries are ripe,
Baby must have none.
Cherries are too sour to use,
Babies are too young to choose;
By-and-by, baked in a pie,
Baby shall have some.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/cherries-are-ripe/
- Type
- Mother Goose
- Tune
- Spoken rhyme
- Best for ages
- 1 to 5 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Cherries are ripe | Pick pretend cherries from a tree. |
| Baby must have none | Shake your head and wag a finger. |
| Baked in a pie | Draw a big round pie in the air. |
What Does Cherries Are Ripe Mean?
The rhyme sounds like a grown-up changing their mind, but it explains itself: the cherries are too sour to eat raw, and babies are too young to choose. The happy ending is that baby will get some later, sweetened and baked in a pie. By-and-by means soon, or after a while.
History and Origin
The rhyme is printed in National Rhymes of the Nursery. It still carries a sensible message for parents: whole cherries, with their stones, are a choking risk for babies, so they should be stoned and cut up first.
Learning Activities
- Cherry count: count paper cherries into a pie dish.
- Taste and tell: try sweet and sour fruits and sort them.
- Waiting game: talk about things worth waiting for, like a pie in the oven.