Les comptines

Sur le pont d'Avignon: the dancing song and the real bridge

Sur le pont d'Avignon means on the bridge of Avignon. People dance in a ring on the bridge, and each verse copies someone new: the fine gentlemen bow, the fine ladies curtsey. The bridge is real, in the south of France.

Sur le pont d'Avignon

Chorus

  • Sur le pont d'Avignon, On the bridge of Avignon,
  • L'on y danse, l'on y danse, there they dance, there they dance,
  • Sur le pont d'Avignon, on the bridge of Avignon,
  • L'on y danse tous en rond. they all dance round in a ring.

Verse 1

  • Les beaux messieurs font comme ça, The fine gentlemen go like this,
  • Et puis encore comme ça. and then again like this.

Verse 2

  • Les belles dames font comme ça, The fine ladies go like this,
  • Et puis encore comme ça. and then again like this.

Make up your own verse

Sing the chorus, then one of these, and copy the animal.

  • Les petits chats font comme ça. The kittens go like this. Say it lay puh-tee SHA fon kom SA
  • Les gros ours font comme ça. The big bears go like this. Say it lay groh ZOORS fon kom SA
  • Les bébés font comme ça. The babies go like this. Say it lay bay-BAY fon kom SA

The real bridge

The Pont Saint-Bénézet crossed the Rhône at Avignon, until floods carried most of it away centuries ago. Four arches still stand and stop in mid-river. You can still walk out on what’s left.

How to dance it

Hold hands and walk in a circle for the chorus. On comme ça, stop and copy the verse: bow for the gentlemen, curtsey for the ladies. Then make up your own, and let your child choose the animal.

One thing to do today

Dance the chorus once before the bath. Three times round the living room counts as Avignon.

Where it lives in your day Le Jeu · Playtime in French Follow their hands, name what they touch, and let the play teach

Free bedtime script

Dance, then dodo

After the bridge, the Le Dodo script brings the evening in to land: ten phrases, then lights out.

Ten bedtime phrases, each with a say-it guide, on one page for the bedroom door.

Three emails over your first week to get bedtime started, and you can leave whenever you like.

Questions parents ask

What does sur le pont d'Avignon mean?

On the bridge of Avignon.

Is the bridge of Avignon real?

Yes. It's the Pont Saint-Bénézet over the Rhône in Avignon. Only four arches still stand, ending partway across the river.

What does l'on y danse mean?

They dance there. The l' in front of on is an old-fashioned touch that keeps the rhythm smooth.

How do you dance Sur le pont d'Avignon?

Hold hands and walk in a circle for the chorus, then stop and copy each verse: a bow, a curtsey, or an animal you make up.

Keep going

All the songs and rhymes →

Updated 16 October 2026