Jack Sprat Lyrics
He won't eat fat, she won't eat lean, and between them the plate ends up spotless. Jack Sprat is one of the oldest rhymes in English, first recorded as a proverb in 1639.
Jack Sprat
Jack Sprat
Could eat no fat,
His wife could eat no lean;
And so,
Betwixt them both,
They licked the platter clean.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/jack-sprat/
- Type
- Mother Goose
- First published
- 1639 (as a proverb)
- Tune
- Traditional
- Best for ages
- 2 to 7 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Jack Sprat could eat no fat | Shake your head and push away a pretend plate. |
| His wife could eat no lean | Wrinkle your nose and shake your head again. |
| They licked the platter clean | Pretend to wipe a big plate clean and give a thumbs up. |
What Does Jack Sprat Mean?
A husband and wife have opposite tastes: he only likes lean meat and she only likes the fat. Instead of arguing, they share, and nothing goes to waste. It is a neat little picture of teamwork.
"Platter" is an old word for a large serving plate, and "betwixt" means between.
History and Origin
"Jack Sprat" was an old nickname for a small man. A version of the rhyme appears in 1639 in Paroemiologia, a collection of proverbs by John Clarke, and it was printed as a nursery rhyme in Mother Goose's Melody around 1765.
Learning Activities
- Sharing plate: at lunch, talk about which foods each person likes and how the family can share so nothing is wasted.
- Opposites: list opposite pairs together: fat and lean, hot and cold, big and small.