Cadet Rousselle.

Verse 1

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois maisons,ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah meh-zohn,Cadet Rousselle has three houses,
2. Qui n'ont ni poutres, ni chevrons,kee nohn nee poo-truh nee shuh-vrohn,Which have neither beams nor rafters,
3. C'est pour loger les hirondelles ;seh poor loh-zhay lay-zee-rohn-deh-luh ;It's to house the swallows;
4. Que direz-vous d' Cadet Rousselle ?kuh dee-ray-voo ka-deh roo-seh-luh ?What will you say of Cadet Rousselle?

Refrain

1. Ah ! ah ! ah ! mais vraiment,ah ! ah ! ah ! meh vreh-mahn,Ah! ah! ah! but truly,
2. Cadet Rousselle est bon enfant.ka-deh roo-sehl eh bo-nahn-fahn.Cadet Rousselle is a good fellow.

Verse 2

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois habits :ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah-zah-bee :Cadet Rousselle has three coats:
2. Deux jaunes, l'autre en papier gris ;duh zhohn, loh-truh ahn pah-pyay gree ;Two yellow, the other of grey paper;
3. Il met celui-là quand il gèle,eel meh suh-lwee-lah kahn-teel zheh-luh,He wears that one when it's freezing,
4. Ou quand il pleut, ou quand il grêle.oo kahn-teel pluh, oo kahn-teel greh-luh.Or when it rains, or when it hails.

Verse 3

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois chapeaux :ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah shah-poh :Cadet Rousselle has three hats:
2. Les deux ronds ne sont pas très beaux,lay duh rohn nuh sohn pah treh boh,The two round ones are not very handsome,
3. Et le troisième est à deux cornes ;ay luh trwah-zyehm eh tah duh kor-nuh ;And the third has two horns;
4. De sa tête, il a pris la forme.duh sah teht, eel ah pree lah for-muh.It has taken the shape of his head.

Verse 4

1. Cadet Rousselle a une épée,ka-deh roo-sehl ah ewn ay-pay,Cadet Rousselle has a sword,
2. Très longue, mais toute rouillée ;treh lohng, meh toot roo-yay ;Very long, but entirely rusted;
3. On dit qu'ell' ne cherche querelleohn dee kehl nuh shairsh kuh-rehlThey say it picks a quarrel
4. Qu'aux moineaux et aux hirondelles.koh mwah-noh ay oh zee-rohn-deh-luh.Only with sparrows and swallows.

Verse 5

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois souliers,ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah soo-lyay,Cadet Rousselle has three shoes,
2. Il en met deux à ses deux pieds ;eel ahn meh duh-zah say duh pyay ;He puts two on his two feet;
3. Le troisièm' n'a pas de semelle ;luh trwah-zyem nah pah duh suh-meh-luh ;The third has no sole;
4. Il s'en sert pour chausser sa belle.eel sahn sair poor shoh-say sah beh-luh.He uses it to shoe his sweetheart.

Verse 6

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois gros chiens :ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah groh shyehn :Cadet Rousselle has three big dogs:
2. L'un court au lièvr', l'autre au lapin.luhn koor oh lyeh-vruh, loh-truh oh lah-pehn.One chases the hare, the other the rabbit.
3. L' troisièm' s'enfuit quand on l'appelle,luh trwah-zyem sahn-fwee kahn-tohn lah-peh-luh,The third runs off when called,
4. Comm' le chien de Jean de Nivelle.kom luh shyehn duh zhahn duh nee-veh-luh.Like the dog of Jean de Nivelle.

Verse 7

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois beaux chats,ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah boh shah,Cadet Rousselle has three fine cats,
2. Qui n'attrapent jamais les rats ;kee nah-trahp zhah-meh lay rah ;Who never catch the rats;
3. Le troisièm' n'a pas de prunelle ;luh trwah-zyem nah pah duh prew-neh-luh ;The third has no eye at all;
4. Il monte au grenier sans chandelle.eel mohnt oh gruh-nyay sahn shahn-deh-luh.He climbs to the attic without a candle.

Verse 8

1. Cadet Rousselle a trois deniers,ka-deh roo-sehl ah trwah duh-nyay,Cadet Rousselle has three coins,
2. C'est pour payer ses créanciers ;seh poor pay-yay say kray-ahn-syay ;It's to pay his creditors;
3. Quand il a montré ses ressources,kahn-teel ah mohn-tray say ruh-soors,Once he has shown his resources,
4. Il les resserr' dans sa bourse.eel lay ruh-sair dahn sah boors.He tucks them straight back in his purse.

Verse 9

1. Cadet Rousselle ne mourra pas,ka-deh roo-sehl nuh moo-rah pah,Cadet Rousselle will not die,
2. Car avant de sauter le pas,kahr ah-vahn duh soh-tay luh pah,For before he takes that final step,
3. On dit qu'il apprend l'orthographeohn dee keel ah-prahn lor-toh-grahfThey say he's learning his spelling
4. Pour fair' lui-mêm' son épitaphe.poor fair lwee-mehm sohn ay-pee-tahf.So he can write his own epitaph.