Tricky tongue twisters train tired tongues. You might have practiced some tongue twisters on the playground, but as adults, we rarely say them. However, you might want to start up again because they are more than just funny ways to get your friends tongue-tied!
What Are Tongue Twisters?
Tongue twisters are a string of words that are difficult to say correctly. They typically work by repeating the same sound at the beginning of each word, also known as alliteration! They might also be tongue twisters if they make your tongue switch between two different forms, like the famous woodchuck wood twister. Go ahead, say wood, then say chuck; see how your tongue goes from resting on the bottom of your mouth to pressed against the top.
What Are the Benefits of Tongue Twisters?
These might just seem like a fun way to waste some time or one-up a friend who can’t enunciate fast. They have multiple benefits, such as:
- Vocal warmup
- Stretch and strengthen the muscles you use to speak
- Help with pronunciation
- Improve memory
- Help master fluency
Funny Tongue Twisters
There are plenty of types of tongue twisters, long, short, easy, and difficult. But there is no better way to start a list than with funny.
- How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?
- Rugged rubber baby buggy bumpers.
- A noisy noise annoys an oyster.
- I wish to wish the wish you wish to wish, but if you wish the wish the witch wishes, I won’t wish the wish you wish to wish.
- I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!
- If Stu chews shoes, should Stu choose the shoes he chews?
- The 33 thieves thought that they thrilled the throne throughout Thursday.
- Thirty-three thirsty thundering thoroughbreds thumped Mr. Thurber on Thursday.
- Fred fed Ted bread, and Ted fed Fred bread.
- A skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk, but the stump thunk the skunk stunk.
- Gobbling gargoyles gobbled gobbling goblins.
- When you write copy you have the right to copyright the copy you write.
- Six slimy snails sailed silently.
- Roofs of mushrooms rarely mush too much.
- Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Spread it thick, say it quick! Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Spread it thicker, say it quicker! Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Don’t eat with your mouth full!
- Chester Cheetah chews a chunk of cheep cheddar cheese.
- Yally Bally had a jolly golliwog. Feeling folly, Yally Bally Bought his jolly golli’ a dollie made of holly! The golli’, feeling jolly, named the holly dollie, Polly. So Yally Bally’s jolly golli’s holly dollie Polly’s also jolly!
- Octopus ocular optics.
- This is the sixth zebra snoozing thoroughly.
- Suzie Seaword’s fish sauce shop sells unsifted thistles for thistle-sifters to sift.
- Mo mi mo me send me a toe, Me me mo mi get me a mole, Mo mi mo me send me a toe, Fe me mo mi get me a mole, Mister kister feet so sweet, Mister kister where will I eat!?
- I wish you were a fish in my dish
- She stood on the balcony, inexplicably mimicking him hiccuping, and amicably welcoming him in.
- Betty Botter bought some butter, but she said, “This butter’s bitter. If I put it in my batter, it will make my batter bitter. But a bit of better butter will make my batter better.” So she bought a bit of butter better than her bitter butter and put it in her batter, and her batter was not bitter. So ’twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter.
Easy Tongue Twisters
Ready to start practicing your tongue twisters? Start out with some easy ones. You might recognize some of these from the schoolyard. Once you get these down, try repeating them multiple times in a row.
- I saw a kitten eating chicken in the kitchen.
- Friendly fleas and fireflies.
- Duck takes licks in lakes
- Double bubble gum, bubbles double.
- Loose lips, long licks.
- Sheena leads, Sheila needs.
- Wayne went to Wales to watch walruses.
- Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.
- Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better.
- Red leather yellow leather.
- She sells seashells by the seashore.
- Zebra zig and zebra zag.
- A big black bug bit a big black dog on his big black nose.
- How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
- I can think of six thin things, but I can think of six thick things too.
- Ned Nott was shot and Sam Shott was not, so is it better to be Shott than Nott?
- Not these things here, but those things there.
- Give Papa a cup of proper coffee in a copper coffee cup.
- Which wristwatches are Swiss wristwatches?
- She sells sea shells by the seashore.
- She sees cheese.
- The blue bluebird blinks.
- Red lorry, yellow lorry.
- Zebras zig and zebras zag
- Six sticky skeletons.
- Truly rural.
- He threw three free throws.
- Divers dive deep.
- Billybob blabbered boldly.
- Follow the fellow.
- Scissors sizzle, thistles sizzle.
- Light the night light tonight.
Hard Tongue Twisters
Now you’re ready for some difficult ones! These aren’t always long, just known for being extremely hard to perfect. Go ahead, we promise we won’t judge if you slip up. Fun fact, the final two tongue twisters on this list are known as the the most difficult ones out there!
- A tutor who tooted 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?
- Brisk brave brigadiers brandished broad bright blades, blunderbusses, and bludgeons—balancing them badly.
- How many yaks could a yak pack, pack if a yak pack could pack yaks?
- Many an anemone sees an enemy anemone.
- Near an ear, a nearer ear, a nearly eerie ear.
- If you must cross a course cross cow across a crowded cow crossing, cross the cross coarse cow across the crowded cow crossing carefully.
- Betty bought a bit of butter. But the butter Betty bought was bitter. So Betty bought a better butter, and it was better than the butter Betty bought before.
- Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager managing an imaginary menagerie.
- I like New York, unique New York, I like unique New York.
- The great Greek grape growers grow great Greek grapes.
- Send toast to ten tense stout saints’ ten tall tents.
- Rory the warrior and Roger the worrier were reared wrongly in a rural brewery.
- Six sick hicks nick six slick bricks with picks and sticks.
- English can be understood through tough thorough thought though.
- Silly Sally swiftly shooed seven silly sheep. The seven silly sheep Silly Sally shooed shilly-shallied south. These sheep shouldn’t sleep in a shack; sheep should sleep in a shed.
- To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock in a pestilential prison with a life-long lock, awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock from a cheap and chippy chopper with a big, black block.
- A synonym for cinnamon is a cinnamon synonym.
- Thirty-three thousand feathers on a thrush’s throat.
- Round the rough and rugged rock, the ragged rascal rudely ran.
- The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.
- Pad kid poured curd-pulled cod.
