eeny, meeny, miny, moe

eeny, meeny, miny, moe

English

Alternative forms

• eeni meeni mina mo
• eeny-meeny-miney-mo

Etymology

Compare Dutch iene miene mutte German ene mene mu. (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

eeny, meeny, miny, moe (uncountable)

1. A method of choosing between two or more people or things, used by children. A child points to each item in turn (or alternately), while saying a rhyme starting "Eeny, meeny, miney, moe", moving to the next item after each quarter-line (i.e. each word or pair of syllables). The item pointed to on the last word of the rhyme is the one chosen.
   • 1959, John Knowles, chapter 3, in A Separate Peace:

     “...As for this thing”, ... he held up the shuttlecock, contaminated, in his outstretched right [hand], “this idiot tickler, the only thing it's good for is eeny-meeny-miney-mo”.

   • 1985, Lawrence Durrell, Quinx, Faber & Faber; (Avignon Quintet), published 2004, page 1252:

     “Well”, said Lord Galen in some dismay, “I suppose we shall have to cast lots or play at Eeni Meeni Mina Mo?”

Translations

similar children's counting-out games in other languages

Arabic: حكرة بكرة‎ Bulgarian: а́ла ба́ла ни́ца ту́рска пани́ца, ой ги́ди Ва́нчо наш капита́нчо (ála bála níca túrska paníca, oj gídi Vánčo naš kapitánčo) Cebuano: butikaw, butikaw, ikaw Chinese: Cantonese: 點指兵兵, 点指兵兵 (dim2 zi2 bing1 bing1) Mandarin: 一二三四五，上山打老虎 (yī èr sān sì wǔ, shàngshān dǎ lǎohǔ, literally “12345, climb a mountain and beat a tiger”), 你拍一，我拍一，一隻小貓坐飛機／你拍一，我拍一，一只小猫坐飞机 (nǐ pāiyī, wǒ pāiyī, yī zhī xiǎomāo zuò fēijī) Danish: ælle bælle mig fortælle Dutch: iene miene mutte Finnish: entten-tentten-teelika-mentten French: ams tram gram (fr) German: ene mene miste, ene mene mu Greek: α μπε μπα μπλομ του κίθε μπλομ (a be ba blom tou kíthe blom) Hebrew: אן דן דינו‎ Hungarian: Ec-pec/ecc-pecc, kime-hetsz, holnap-után bejö-hetsz, cér-nára, cine-gére, ugorj, cica, az͜ e-gérre, huss/fuss! Icelandic: úllen dúllen doff Indonesian: cap cip cup kembang kuncup, kuda lari kejepit pintu (literally "cap cip cup flower bud, a horse ran and was pinched by the door") Italian: Igne migne magna mo Japanese: どちらにしようかな (dochira ni shiyō kana) Korean: please add this translation if you can Norwegian: elle melle, elle melle deg fortelle, akka bakka bonka rakka Persian: آن مان نواران‎ Polish: entliczek pentliczek czerwony stoliczek na kogo wypadnie na tego bec Portuguese: uni-duni-tê m Romanian: an-tan-te, ala-bala portocala Russian: э́ни бе́ни ре́с, кви́нтер фи́нтер же́с, э́ни бе́ни ря́ба, кви́нтер фи́нтер жа́ба (éni béni rés, kvínter fínter žés, éni béni rjába, kvínter fínter žába) Spanish: (Colombia) detín, marín, dedó, pingüé, (Spain) una, dole, tele, catole, pito, pito, gorgorito Swedish: ole, dole, doff Thai: please add this translation if you can

See also

• ip dip
• tinker, tailor
• duck, duck, goose
• nievie-nievie-nick-nack

Further reading

• eeny, meeny, miny, moe on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• eeny-meeny-miney-mo