This Little Piggy Lyrics
Five toes, five little pigs, and a tickle at the end. This toe-counting game has been played with babies since at least the 1700s, and it still works every time.
This Little Piggy
This little pig went to market;
This little pig stayed home;
This little pig had roast beef;
This little pig had none;
And this little pig cried, "Wee, wee, wee!"
All the way home.
The older ending (The Real Mother Goose, 1916)
This little pig went to market;
This little pig stayed at home;
This little pig had roast beef;
This little pig had none;
This little pig said, "Wee, wee!
I can't find my way home."
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/this-little-piggy/
- Type
- Action Songs, Animal Rhymes
- First published
- 1700s
- Tune
- Spoken rhyme
- Best for ages
- 0 to 3 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| This little pig went to market | Hold your baby's big toe and give it a gentle wiggle. |
| This little pig stayed home | Move to the next toe. |
| This little pig had roast beef | Wiggle the middle toe. |
| This little pig had none | Wiggle the fourth toe with a sad face. |
| And this little pig cried, "Wee, wee, wee!" all the way home | Take the little toe, then run your fingers up baby's leg to a tummy tickle. |
What Does This Little Piggy Mean?
Each toe gets its own tiny story: one goes shopping, one stays in, one eats well, one goes hungry, and the smallest runs home squealing. The fun for a baby is the build-up. After a few rounds they start giggling before you even reach the last toe, because they know the tickle is coming.
In the older wording below, the last little pig can't find its way home. The "all the way home" ending is the one most parents know today.
History and Origin
Toe and finger counting games are among the oldest ways adults play with babies, and this one was already in print in England in the 1700s. In the United States it is usually called "This Little Piggy", while older British books say "This little pig".
Learning Activities
- Fingers too: play it on fingers when socks and shoes are on.
- Swap the foods: let an older toddler choose what each piggy eats, such as pizza, bananas or nothing at all.
- Counting practice: count the toes out loud after each round, one to five.