Two Legs Sat upon Three Legs (Riddle) Lyrics
A riddle that counts legs: a man, a stool, a leg of mutton and a dog, in a tiny story of theft and a chase.
Two Legs Sat upon Three Legs (Riddle)
Two legs sat upon three legs,
With one leg in his lap;
In comes four legs,
And runs away with one leg.
Up jumps two legs,
Catches up three legs,
Throws it after four legs,
And makes him bring back one leg.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/two-legs-sat-upon-three-legs/
- Type
- Mother Goose
- Tune
- Spoken as a riddle, then solved together
- Best for ages
- 5 to 10 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Two legs sat upon three legs | Hold up two fingers, then three. |
| In comes four legs | Walk four fingers across the table like a dog. |
| Up jumps two legs | Jump to your feet. |
What Does Two Legs Sat upon Three Legs (Riddle) Mean?
Each number of legs stands for something different. Two legs is a man, three legs is a three-legged stool, one leg is a leg of mutton, and four legs is a dog.
Read it again with the answers in. A man sits on a stool with a leg of mutton in his lap. A dog comes in and runs away with the mutton. The man jumps up, catches up the stool and throws it after the dog, and makes the dog bring the mutton back. It is a good riddle for showing children how a few plain words can hide a whole scene.
History and Origin
Walter Jerrold prints the riddle in The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes (1903). The same lines are in James Orchard Halliwell's collection, where a note in square brackets gives the answer: one leg is a leg of mutton, two legs a man, three legs a stool and four legs a dog.
Learning Activities
- Riddle first: read the first four lines aloud and let children guess before giving the answers.
- Guess and draw: draw a man, a stool, a leg of mutton and a dog on four cards, then read the riddle slowly and let children hold up the right card for each number of legs.
- Count the legs: make a table of animals and objects with 1, 2, 3 and 4 legs.