I am a free-lance journalist currently focusing on projects involving translations between English and Swedish, my native tongue. Right now I'm creating the English version of a preexisting website on behalf of a local artist and I've realised that works of art usually have titles that are difficult to translate. They're often quite simple phrases, but almost always carry ambiguous double-meanings.
The title I'm having the most trouble with is a line from what I guess is a classic Swedish nursery rhyme, used by children when bracing themselves before doing something relatively bold (the picture it accompanies is of a child preparing to jump into a body of water). It translates (very) roughly into:
"One, two, three On four it's going to happen On five it definitely will On six it does with a bang"
My question is this: can anyone who's grown up or raised children in an English-speaking country think of a corresponding jingle/chant/rhyme? I will be most grateful for any replies and I am of course not hoping for something that means exactly the same, but rather just anything to spark my imagination.
Thank you
Top answer
To me, this sound similar to this sing-song expression: One for the money, Two for the show, Three to get ready, and four to go!
— Doctor D
To me, this sound similar to this sing-song expression: One for the money, Two for the show, Three to get ready, and four to go!
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