Lock and Key Lyrics
Two players take turns. One says "I am a gold lock", the other answers "I am a gold key", and they work down through silver, brass and lead until the last line turns into a joke.
Lock and Key
"I am a gold lock."
"I am a gold key."
"I am a silver lock."
"I am a silver key."
"I am a brass lock."
"I am a brass key."
"I am a lead lock."
"I am a lead key."
"I am a don lock."
"I am a don key!"
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/lock-and-key/
- Type
- Mother Goose
- Tune
- Spoken call and answer
- Best for ages
- 4 to 9 years
What Does Lock and Key Mean?
It is a trick rhyme. The metals get less precious each time: gold, silver, brass, then lead. The child saying "lock" sets up the last line, and the other child, who has been saying "key" all along, ends up announcing "I am a don key!" So the joke lands on whoever answers. The trick only works once on each person, which is part of the fun.
History and Origin
This version is from The Real Mother Goose (1916). Similar catch rhymes, made to trick a friend into saying something silly, have been passed around playgrounds for a long time.
Learning Activities
- Play it: an older child or adult says the lock lines and a younger child answers. Watch their face at the end.
- Metal hunt: look around the house for things made of gold, silver or brass colors.
- Make your own: invent another trick rhyme that ends in an animal name, like monkey.