This Is the Way the Ladies Ride Lyrics
First a gentle trot, then a gallop, then a wobbly bumpy ride that ends with a tumble into your arms. This knee-bouncing rhyme gets faster with every verse.
This Is the Way the Ladies Ride
This is the way the ladies ride,
Tri, tre, tre, tree,
Tri, tre, tre, tree!
This is the way the ladies ride,
Tri, tre, tre, tre, tri-tre-tre-tree!
The gentlemen and the farmers
This is the way the gentlemen ride,
Gallop-a-trot,
Gallop-a-trot!
This is the way the gentlemen ride,
Gallop-a-gallop-a-trot!
This is the way the farmers ride,
Hobbledy-hoy,
Hobbledy-hoy!
This is the way the farmers ride,
Hobbledy-hobbledy-hoy!
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/this-is-the-way-the-ladies-ride/
- Type
- Action Songs
- Tune
- Traditional
- Best for ages
- 0 to 3 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| This is the way the ladies ride | Sit your baby on your knees facing you and bounce very gently. |
| This is the way the gentlemen ride | Bounce a bit faster and higher: gallop-a-trot. |
| This is the way the farmers ride | Rock from side to side in a bumpy, wobbly ride. |
| Hobbledy-hobbledy-hoy! | Open your knees and let your baby drop gently between them, holding them safely. |
What Does This Is the Way the Ladies Ride Mean?
Each verse is a different rider on a different kind of horse. The ladies ride politely ("tri, tre, tre, tree"), the gentlemen gallop and trot, and the farmers go hobbledy-hoy, bumping along on a clumsy workhorse. The sounds tell you how to bounce, which is why the rhyme works even for babies too young to follow the words.
History and Origin
Knee-riding rhymes like this are found all over Europe, each with its own list of riders. James Orchard Halliwell recorded an English version in the 1840s. The three verses here are from The Real Mother Goose (1916). Some families add their own riders, like a grandpa, a teacher or a pirate.
Learning Activities
- Build up slowly: keep the first verse very gentle and save the big bounce for the end, so your baby learns to expect it.
- Add riders: make up new verses with your own family members and a new sound for each.
- Horse sounds: click your tongue for hooves and see if your baby copies you.