Lyrics
I hear thunder! I hear thunder! Oh! don't you? Oh! don't you? Pitter, patter raindrops, Pitter, patter raindrops, I'm wet through! I'm wet through!
#I Hear Thunder at a glance
- Country of origin
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Sung in
- English
- Words by
- Traditional
- First known
- traditional; sung to the "Frère Jacques" tune
- Best for ages
- 2–7
- Mood
- playful, traditional
- Last updated
- 25 July 2026
How to sing it
- On "I hear thunder", cup a hand to your ear, then drum on the floor or your knees.
- On "pitter, patter raindrops", flutter your fingers down like falling rain.
- On "I'm wet through!", give a big shiver and shake the raindrops off.
Meaning and origin
This is a whole weather system packed into one short song. It starts with a rumble — I hear thunder! — asks whether you can hear it too, and then the rain arrives, pattering down until everyone is thoroughly soaked. Children act the whole thing out: an ear cocked for the thunder, fingers fluttering down like raindrops, and a big shiver at the end on “I’m wet through!”
Its cleverness is that it borrows a melody every child already half-knows — the tune of “Frère Jacques”. Fitting new words to a familiar round makes it instantly singable, which is exactly why it thrives in nurseries and playgroups. No author is recorded for the words; like most such action songs it has simply been handed down, a tiny storm you can conjure indoors on any dry afternoon.
Common questions
- What is "I Hear Thunder" about?
- A little rainstorm. The singer hears thunder, then the rain comes pattering down — pitter, patter raindrops — until everyone is soaked "through". Children act it all out, listening for the thunder and fluttering their fingers as the rain.
- What tune is "I Hear Thunder" sung to?
- To the melody of "Frère Jacques" (the same tune as "Are You Sleeping, Brother John?"). The words are simply fitted to that well-known round, which makes it very easy for small children to pick up.
- Who wrote "I Hear Thunder"?
- No author is recorded. It is a traditional action song for young children, passed on in playgroups and nurseries, built on the borrowed "Frère Jacques" melody.
