English Explanatory Dictionary

and a partridge in a pear tree

English dictionary entry

Meanings

phrase
  1. Used at the end of a list of items to emphasize its length.

Pronunciation

/ænd ə ˈpɑːtɹɪd͡ʒ ɪn ə ˌpɛə ˈtɹiː/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-and a partridge in a pear tree.wav /ænd ə ˈpɑɹtɹɪd͡ʒ ən ə ˌpɛɚ ˈtɹi/

Word forms

and a partridge in a pear tree

Etymology

From the traditional Christmas song “The Twelve Days of Christmas” first published around 1780, in which earlier lines are repeated and added to with every succeeding line that is sung. The last round of one version of the song that is commonly sung today ends: “On the twelfth day of Christmas, / My true love sent to me / Twelve drummers drumming, / Eleven pipers piping, / Ten lords a-leaping, / Nine ladies dancing, / Eight maids a-milking, / Seven swans a-swimming, / Six geese a-laying, / Five golden rings, / Four calling birds, / Three French hens, / Two turtledoves / And a partridge in a pear tree.”

This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on A Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary