справка:
It's a form of comic verse invented by Edmund Clerihew Bentley (1875-1956). A Clerihew has only four lines and a sort of comic "biografy". Mr. Bentley even wrote a book of Clerihews which he called
"Biography for Beginners"
Magic Words
Hearts like doors will open with ease
To very, very little keys;
And don't forget that they are these:
"We thank you all" and "If you please".
Little Things
Little drops of water,
Little grains of sand
Make the mighty ocean
And the pleasant land.
Tick of the Clock
"Tick", the clock says, "Tick-tick-tick!"
What you have to do, do quick:
Time is gliding fast away;
Let us act, and act to-day!
If your lesson you must get,
Do it now and do not fret:
Only that is really fun
Which comes after work is done.
When your mother says "Obey",
Do not loiter, do not stay;
Wait not for another tick;
What you have to do, do quick.
Jack and Jill
Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pale of water.
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after.
Peter, Peter
Peter, Peter, pumpkin-eater
Had a wife but could not keep her.
He put her in the pumpkin shell
And there he kept her very well.
Good Morning
Good morning, good morning,
Good morning to you.
Good morning, good morning,
We're glad to see you!
Little Mouse
-Little mouse, little mouse,
Where is your house?
-Little cat, little cat,
I have no flat.
I am a poor mouse,
I have no house.
-Little mouse, little mouse,
Come to my house.
-Little cat, little cat,
I can't do that.
You want to eat me!
Little Cat
-Little cat, little cat,
As you sat on a mat
Did you dream of a mouse
Or a big fat rat?
-Oh, no!
Not so!
For I always dream
Of a dish
Full of fish
And a bowl
Full of cream.
The Kitchen
The kitchen is the nicest place
In all the house to me,
For that's where Mummy bakes the pies
And fruity cakes for tea.
The House of a Mouse
The house of a mouse
Is a very little house.
It's a green little house in the grass,
Which big clumsy folk
May hunt and may poke
And still never see as they pass
This sweet little house in the grass!
Swing Me
Swing me over the water,
Swing me over the sea.
Swing me over the garden,
Swing me home to sweet tea.
An Old Grey Goose
An old grey goose am I.
Th! Th! Th!
I stretch my neck and cry:
Th! Th! Th!
As puppies passing by,
I like to make them cry!
Th! Th! Th!
When puppies jump and run,
I think it's lots of fun!
Th! Th! Th!
I'm sure they'd like to be
An old grey goose like me.
Say It All Again
I like Bunny.
Bears like honey.
Girls like cats.
Cats like rats.
Boys like dogs.
Storks like frogs.
Mice like cheese.
Sparrows like peas.
Owls like mice.
I like rice.
Birds like grain.
Say it all again.
Family
Here is my father,
Here is my mother,
Here is my sister,
Here is my brother.
Father, mother,
Sister, brother,
Hand in hand
With one another.
How
Many Days…?
How many days has my baby to play?
Saturday, Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday,
Saturday, Sunday, Monday.
Hop away, skip away,
My baby wants to play.
My baby wants to play every day.
A Frog
The little green frog
Jumps oh a log,
Takes off his cloak
And begins to croak!
At Night
At night when it is time to bed,
I yawn and yawn, and yawn!
I stretch my arms and lift my head
And yawn, and yawn, and yawn!
I brush my teeth and wash my face
And yawn, and yawn, and yawn!
They say good night and climb the stairs
And yawn, and yawn, and yawn!
I Wonder as Into Bed I Creep...
I wonder as into bed I creep
What it feels like to fall asleep?
I've told myself stories, I've counted sheep
But I'm always asleep when I fall asleep.
Tonight my eyes I will open keep
And I'll stay awake till I fall asleep,
Then I'll know what it's like
To fall asleep, asleep…
Good Night
Good night,
Sleep tight,
Wake up bright
In the morning light
To do what's right
With all your might!
Why Study?
The more we learn, the more we know.
The more we know, the more we forget.
The more we forget, the less we know.
The less we know, the less we forget.
The less we forget, the more we know.
So why study?
In Winter I Get Up at Night...
In winter I get up at night,
And dress by yellow candle light.
In summer quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.
I Like to Go Out in the Garden...
I like to go out in the garden,
I like to get up on the wall.
I like to do any thing really,
But I hate to do nothing at all.
About Jim
"Pudding and pie"
Said Jim, "Oh my!"
"Which would you rather?"
Said his father.
"Both," said Jim.
That's just like him
The Wise Owl
There was an old owl who lived in an oak,
The more he heard, the less he spoke;
The less he spoke, the more he heard-
Oh, if men were all like that wise bird!
Мудрая сова
Жила-была сова. Она вела себя премило:
Чем больше слушала слова, тем меньше говорила.
Тем больше услыхать могла того, что пригодиться.
Ах, если б люди были так мудры, как эта птица!
The Kitten
The trouble with a kitten is
THAT
Eventually it becomes a
CAT.
Котенок
С котенком вся проблема в том,
ЧТО
Он становится
КОТОМ.
The Fly
God in His wisdom made the fly
And then forgot to tell us why.
Мудрость творца
Бог был настолько мудр, что муху сотворил!
Бог знает, для чего. Но нам сказать забыл.
The Mules
In the world of mules
There are no rules.
Среди ослов
Знает тот, кто ими правил,
Что ослы не знают правил.
Friendship (by Ogden
Nash)
To keep your friendship brimming
With love in the loving cup,
Whenever you're wrong, admit it;
Whenever you're right, shut up.
Чтобы тени и сомненья
Дружбу врозь не развели,
В чем ошибся - признавайся;
В чем ошиблись - не кори.
On the Ice
Slide, slide, the ice is strong,
Quickly, quickly slide along!
Slide along and don't be slow,
In the cold your face will glow!
Slide along, slide very fast,
It's a shame to be the last!
To the Zoo
We're off to the Zoo! We're off to the Zoo!
We haven't a moment to spare,
We're going to see the kangaroo,
And feed the big brown bear.
We're going to hear the hyena laugh,
And see the lion to-day,
The tiger, and the tall giraffe,
And the monkeys all at play.
R. L. Stevenson
Wee Willie Winkle
Wee Willie Winkle runs through the town,
Upstairs,
downstairs,
in his night gown,
Knocking at the window, crying through the lock,
"Are the children in their beds,
For now it's eight o'clock."
A Song of Seasons
Sing a song of seasons,
Something bright in all!
Flowers in the summer,
Fires in the fall.
R. L. Stevenson
The Months
Thirty days has September,
April, June and November;
February has twenty-eight alone,
And the rest have thirty-one,
Excepting leap year, that's the time,
When February days are twenty-nine.
R. L. Stevenson
Little Drops of Rain
Beating, running, making rivers,
The little drops of rain.
Fitter patter, pitter patter,
Down the window-pane.
Rain, Rain...
Rain, rain, go away;
Come again another day,
Little Bobby wants to play.
The North Wind
The north wind will blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will poor Robin do then?
Poor thing!
He'll sit in a barn,
And keep himself warm,
And hide his head under his wing.
Poor thing!
The Day
Twelve good hours in every day,
Time for work and time for play,
Twenty-four for day and night,
Some for darkness, some for light.
Bed in Summer
In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candle-light.
In summer quite the other way -
I have to go to bed by day.
I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree.
Or hear the grown-up people's feet
Still going past me in the street.
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?
R. L. Stevenson
The Sun's Travels
The sun is not a-bed when I
At night upon my pillow lie;
Still round the earth his way he takes,
And morning after morning makes.
The Star
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are,
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
When the blazing sun is set,
And the grass with dew is wet,
Then you show your little light,
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night
In the dark blue sky you keep,
And often through my curtains peep,
For you never shut your eye,
Till the sun is in the sky.
Jane Taylor
Evening
Now the day is over,
Night is drawing nigh,
Shadows of the evening,
Steal across the sky.
Now the darkness gathers,
Stars begin to peep,
Birds and beasts and flowers,
Soon will be asleep.
Clerihew 1
The Art of Biography
Is different from Geography.
Geography is about maps,
But Biography is about chaps.
Clerihew
2
What I like about Clive*
Is that he is no longer alive.
There's a great deal to be said
For being dead.
Clerihew 3
Sir Christopher Wren*
Said, "I am going to dine with some men.
If anybody calls
Say I'm designing St. Paul's."
Cathedral and fifty-two other churches in London after the Great Fire in 1666.