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Glite Dictionary
ring-a-rosy

ring-a-rosy

9.9
A children's game where players hold hands, move in a circle and fall down together
  • noun
  • /ˈrɪŋ ə ˈroʊ zi/
  • Baby Talk
translation icon : juego de la rueda
  • The children played ring-a-rosy in the park, laughing loudly as they all fell down together.

Examples

  • The children played ring-a-rosy in the park.

  • Can we play ring-a-rosy after lunch?

  • During recess, the teacher led the class in a game of ring-a-rosy.

  • Memories of ring-a-rosy always remind her of her early school days.

  • The children played ring-a-rosy in the park, laughing loudly as they fell to the ground.

  • During recess, the teacher led the class in a game of ring-a-rosy.

  • Can we play ring-a-rosy after lunch in the playground?

Synonyms

ring-around-the-rosy
vsring-a-rosy
  • Baby Talk
1 6.0

A children's game where players hold hands, walk in a circle, and fall down while singing

focuses on joining hands and falling together rather than the song
ring-around-a-rosy
vsring-a-rosy
  • Baby Talk
8.0

A children's game where players hold hands in a circle, sing, and fall down

is the same game but described by its movement and joint fall

Surface Forms

ring-a-rosy singular
ring-a-rosies plural

Morphology

ring-a-rosy = ring + rosy (semi-transparent) = ring + a + rosy

Although transparently built from 'ring' and 'rosy', the headword denotes a specific nursery-game and rhyme, so the full meaning is idiomatic and not directly deducible from the components.

Etymology

Ring-a-rosy comes from ring meaning 'circle' and rosy from the little rose or red spot in the old children's rhyme, so the name fits a game where children join hands in a circle and sing. A popular story says the rhyme is about the plague, but that is probably just a folk story, and the picture of everyone singing and then 'all fall down' is what helps you remember the game.