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There are several early-published versions with significant variations including "Little Mary Ester sat upon a tester" (1812) and "Little Miss Mopsey, Sat in the shopsey" (1842). Other collected variants have included "Little Miss Muffet, sat on a toffet" (1830s?) and "Little Miss Muffet, sat on a
199:
remarked, "Perhaps some of you would like to know what a tuffet is. I have thought of that myself, and have taken the trouble to ask several learned persons. They assure me that the most complete and satisfactory definition is,—a tuffet is the kind of thing that Miss Muffet sat on."
287:
gives a secondary definition "hassock or footstool", but calls this "doubtful". It lists an example from 1895 in which the meaning is "a three-legged stool" and another from 1904 with the meaning "footstool". Some sources, including
164:
is now sometimes used to mean a type of low seat, the word in the rhyme probably originally referred to a grassy hillock, small knoll or mound (a variant spelling of an obsolete and rare meaning of "tuft"). The
300:(1983), failed to recognise this meaning at all, and listed only the grassy knoll definition. Nevertheless, there is a long tradition of illustrators showing some sort of low seat, including
382:" (the last known to have been current at least as early as 1720). It is possible that all of these rhymes, and others, are parodies of whichever unknown rhyme came first.
339:
171:
calls the "hassock or footstool" meaning "doubtful", and "perhaps due to misunderstanding of the nursery rhyme". Many modern dictionaries including
901:
393:, but the Opies are sceptical given the two-hundred-year gap between his death and the rhyme's appearance. It has also been claimed to refer to
248:
129:
Older versions sometimes use "of" rather than "her" in line 3, and refer to a "little spider" as in this example dating between 1837 and 1845:
215:
with the related meaning "tuft" (for example a cluster of short-stalked leaves or flowers growing from a common point) date back to 1553. The
755:
290:
916:
208:
According to the Oxford
English Dictionary the word in the nursery rhyme may refer to "a grassy hillock, a small knoll or mound".
354:
324:
264:
881:
865:
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argue that it is likely to be considerably older given its similarity to other rhymes such as "Little Polly
Flinders", "
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Since the rhyme provides little context, several writers have expressed confusion about its meaning. In 1902,
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number of 20605. The rhyme has for over a century attracted discussion as to the proper meaning of the word
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It is sometimes claimed – without evidence – that the original Miss Muffet was
Patience, daughter of Dr
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The origins of the rhyme are unclear. Although no record has been found before 1805,
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buffet" (1840s?). In a later United States example, "whey" was replaced with "pie".
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Many illustrators have shown Miss Muffet sitting on a mound or hillock, including
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An 1888 variant of the rhyme has "she sat on a buffet" which the scholars
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562:
Schoolroom Poets: Childhood and the Place of
American Poetry, 1865–1917
410:
51:'s illustrations for one version of the rhyme, from a 1901 edition of
398:
738:. Boston and New York, Houghton, Mifflin and company. p. 4.
507:(2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 323–4.
860:
834:. North Mymms, Hertfordshire, UK: North Mymms History Project
79:
of uncertain origin, first recorded in 1805. It has a
378:", "Little Tommy Tacket", "Little General Monk" and "
511:
430:
219:dictionary suggests that the word derives from the
614:
423:, take their titles from the poem's crucial line.
397:(1543–1587), frightened by the religious reformer
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101:(1805), and there have been many variants since.
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523:. London: Darton and Clark. 1837–1845. pp.
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539:"Search for Roud Folk Song Index number 20605"
802:. London: Kaye & Ward. pp. 173–174.
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646:See entries for "Tuffet 2" and "Tuft 3b".
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409:Several novels and films, including the
902:Songs about fictional female characters
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756:Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
505:The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes
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315:point out certainly refers to a stool.
291:Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
103:The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes
14:
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828:"Was little Miss Muffet a local girl?"
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800:Origins of Rhymes, Songs, and Sayings
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360:1940 poster, with parody of the rhyme
97:The rhyme first appeared in print in
642:participating institution membership
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541:. Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
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389:(d.1604), an English physician and
187:, however, now give both meanings.
24:
596:
25:
933:
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732:Crothers, Samuel McChord (1902).
664:Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
144:And frighten'd Miss Muffet away.
124:And frightened Miss Muffet away.
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826:Shackle, Eric (February 2018) .
773:Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
702:Chambers 21st Century Dictionary
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297:Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
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181:Chambers 21st Century Dictionary
228:, from "tufe", meaning "tuft".
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468:Cultural depictions of spiders
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1:
735:Miss Muffet's Christmas Party
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211:Earlier recorded examples of
917:Traditional children's songs
503:Opie, I.; Opie, P. (1997) .
455:Children's literature portal
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770:Kirkpatrick, E. M. (1983).
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140:There came a little spider,
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749:Brewer, E. Cobham (1898).
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832:Brookmans Park Newsletter
622:Oxford English Dictionary
419:(1993) and its eponymous
285:Oxford English Dictionary
168:Oxford English Dictionary
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138:Eating of curds and whey;
61:
41:
34:
882:English children's songs
798:Harrowven, Jean (1977).
243:Tuffet as a grassy mound
142:Who sat down beside her,
120:There came a big spider,
776:. Edinburgh: Chambers.
627:Oxford University Press
224:
122:Who sat down beside her
49:William Wallace Denslow
892:English nursery rhymes
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520:Songs for the nursery
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105:gives the following:
99:Songs for the Nursery
27:English nursery rhyme
922:Year of song unknown
868:at Wikimedia Commons
421:2001 film adaptation
395:Mary, Queen of Scots
346:Frederick Richardson
319:Tuffet as a low seat
306:Frederick Richardson
256:John Everett Millais
233:John Everett Millais
136:She sat on a tuffet,
81:Roud Folk Song Index
907:Songs about spiders
719:Oxford Dictionaries
625:(Online ed.).
564:. UPNE. p. 80.
416:Along Came a Spider
405:Cultural depictions
372:Iona and Peter Opie
313:Iona and Peter Opie
185:Oxford Dictionaries
912:Songwriter unknown
887:English folk songs
866:Little Miss Muffet
560:Sorby, A. (2005).
380:Little Jack Horner
376:Little Poll Parrot
348:illustration, 1915
333:illustration, 1900
273:illustration, 1913
197:Samuel M. Crothers
160:Although the word
134:Little Miss Muffet
110:Little Miss Muffet
73:Little Miss Muffet
36:Little Miss Muffet
897:Fictional spiders
864:Media related to
685:"Search Chambers"
640:(Subscription or
473:Itsy Bitsy Spider
204:As a grassy mound
191:Uncertain meaning
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545:11 February
304:(1900) and
294:(1898) and
235:(1884) and
114:Eating her
876:Categories
783:0550102345
644:required.)
479:References
411:Alex Cross
399:John Knox
751:"Tuffet"
715:"Tuffet"
689:Chambers
669:26 March
660:"Tuffet"
616:"tuffet"
579:"Tuffet"
427:See also
308:(1915).
239:(1913).
838:7 April
694:6 April
588:6 April
583:Collins
366:Origins
225:tuffete
173:Collins
93:Wording
806:
780:
632:9 June
413:novel
258:, 1884
213:tuffet
162:tuffet
155:Tuffet
86:tuffet
18:Tuffet
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840:2021
804:ISBN
778:ISBN
696:2020
671:2020
634:2023
590:2020
547:2020
283:The
183:and
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