Limericks

These are some particularly good limericks. If you know of any more, please e-mail them to me.

This is probably the world's most recognized limerick.

There once was a man from Nantucket,
who stored all his cash in a bucket.
   His daughter, named Nan,
   ran away from the man
and as for the bucket Nantucket.
        

This is another classic old limerick.

There was a young lady of Wilts,
Who walked up to Scotland on stilts;
   When they said it is shocking
   To show so much stocking,
She answered, "Then what about kilts?"
        

This limerick only makes sense to those familiar with Unix or Linux.

A Unix saleslady, Lenore,
likes work but she likes the beach more.
   She found a good way
   To combine work and play:
She sells C shells by the seashore.
        

This limerick is remarkable for its use of homophones. It is difficult to understand when read aloud.

A flea and a fly in a flue
were imprisoned, so what could they do?
   Said the fly, "let us flee!"
   "Let us fly!" said the flea.
So they flew through a flaw in the flue.
        

Your browser must support Greek "symbol" font to view this limerick properly. You must also know the Greek alphabet.

W P G n b
I m S C h
   r e F
 It's all Greek to Me!
t D Y a z q
        

This is another example of a limerick that is also a tongue twister.

A tutor who taught on the flute
Tried to teach two young tooters to toot.
   Said the two to the tutor,
   "Is it harder to toot, or
To tutor two tooters to toot?"
        

Out dining, an old alligator,
When asked if he’d have coffee later,
   Just shook his head
   And pleasantly said,
"I was planning on having the waiter."
        

There was a young farmer from Leeds
Who swallowed six packets of seeds.
   It soon came to pass
   He was covered with grass,
And he couldn’t sit down for the weeds.
        

There was an old man of Peru
Who dreamt he was eating his shoe.
   He woke in the night
   In a terrible fright,
And found it was perfectly true.
        

A mouse in her room woke Miss Dowd;
She was frightened and screamed very loud,
   Then a happy thought hit her--
   To scare off the critter,
She sat up in bed and meowed.
        

There was a young woman named Bright
Whose speed was much faster than light.
   She set out one day
   In a relative way
And returned on the previous night.
        

If you are interested in learning to write limericks, Limerickologist Robert W. Birch, Ph.D. has created this helpful guide to writing limericks.