and a partridge in a pear tree
/ænd ə ˈpɑɹtɹɪd͡ʒ ən ə ˌpɛɚ ˈtɹi/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.01 in modern English
31
Scrabble Score
24
Letters
2
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "Linnie McAllister: ...five boys, six girls, two drivers,... and a partridge in a pear tree."
- "Her dearly departed husband had left no will. He'd always meant to get around to it, but you know how it is, just kept putting it off. I was to raise Mr. Doughal in front of two lawyers, two witnesses, the Doughals' three grown children, and a partridge in a pear tree."
- "In this corner, one missing Shroud, one impossibly and thoroughly dead corpse, one dedicated and deadly vampire warlord, three holy Knights, twenty-nine fallen angels, and a partridge in a pear tree."
- "About three years ago, half of them had piled into a taxicab that subsequently got into a collision with another cab, which contained—coincidentally—the other half of the Melba family. Consequently, we had eight injured Melbas, seven cases of whiplash, six cracked ribs, five fractured wrists, four chipped teeth, three broken noses, and two uninsured taxis. And a partridge in a pear tree."
- "[W]e are straight, lesbian, married, single, parents, grandparents, "will never have kids!", Christian, "spiritual," Jewish, Republican, Democrat, Independent, American, Iranian, East Coast, West Coast, dog lovers, cat lovers, opera lovers, football fanatics, Gen Y, Gen X, boomers, and a partridge in a pear tree."
- "I have one visible minority, one woman who said she's disabled, one with an indigenous background, two who indicated poverty … 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.”
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ænd ə ˈpɑɹtɹɪd͡ʒ ən ə ˌpɛɚ ˈtɹi/
- British English: /ænd ə ˈpɑːtɹɪd͡ʒ ɪn ə ˌpɛə ˈtɹiː/