Le grand cerf
The Big Deer
Comptine
(French)
1 Dans sa maison
2 Un grand cerf
3 Regardait
4 Par la fenêtre
5 Un lapin
6 Venir à lui
7 Et frapper ainsi
8 Cerf! Cerf!
9 Ouvre-moi
10 Ou le chasseur me tuera
11 Lapin, lapin
12 Entre et viens
13 Me serrer la main.
Rhyme
(English)
1 In his house,
2 A big deer
3 Was looking
4 Through the window
5 A rabbit
6 Coming towards him
7 And knocking this way
8 Deer! Deer!
9 Open up for me
10 Or the hunter will kill me
11 Rabbit, rabbit,
12 Enter and come
13 Shake hands with me.
Game Instructions
Corresponding gestures
1 draw a square with the hands
2 raise one's hands over one's head,
fingers spread out (deer's antlers)
3 shade one's eyes with one's hands
4 same as #1
5 put one's hands by each side
of the head (rabbit's ears)
6 make a "come to me" gesture
7 mime knocking at the door
8 same as #2, twice
9 mime opening a door
10 mime the hunter aiming with his gun
11 same as #5
12 same as #6
13 mime shaking hands.
Arnaud wrote, "We heard lately that line #6 wasn't 'venir à lui' (coming towards him) but 'venir à l'huis', an old French word for 'door' which explains why the rabbit then knocks".
The word "huis" is now obsolete and can only be heard in "à huis-clos" meaning "with closed door" about in-camera trials.
The word "huis" is now obsolete and can only be heard in "à huis-clos" meaning "with closed door" about in-camera trials.
Many thanks to Monique Palomares for contributing and translating this rhyme and for creating the midi music.
Many thanks to Edit' Dupont for contributing and singing this song for Mama Lisa's World.
Merci beaucoup!

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