Tongue Twisters

Tongue Twisters “A tongue-twister is a phrase that is designed to be difficult to articulate properly. Tongue-twisters may rely on similar but distinct phonemes (e.g., s [s] and sh [ʃ]), unfamiliar constructs in loanwords, or other features of a language. The hardest tongue-twister in the English language according to Guinness World Records is supposedly The sixth sick sheikh's sixth sheep's sick.” -

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tongue_twisters

The sixth sheikh’s sixth sheep’s sick. Say these five times fast: Toy boat French friend Sometimes sunshine

Thin thing Bridget is British Blue sheep, black sheep

Wet rain Red leather, yellow leather Unique New York

Saying these just once is hard enough:

Fuzzy wuzzy was a bear, Fuzzy wuzzy had no hair, Fuzzy wuzzy wasn't fuzzy, was he?

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? A woodchuck would chuck all the wood that he could if a woodchuck could chuck wood.

Sister Sue sells sea shells. She sells sea shells on shore. The shells she sells. Are sea shells she sees. Sure she sees shells she sells.

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

Spoonerisms are tongue twisters for adults – watch your mouths! I am a mother pheasant plucker. I pluck mother pheasants. I am the most pleasant mother pheasant plucker to ever pluck a mother pheasant.

I slit the sheet The sheet I slit I sit upon The sheet I slit

There was one smart feller and he felt smart There were two smart fellers and they felt smart There were three smart fellers and they all felt smart

I'm a sock cutter and I cut socks.

There are many websites offering huge lists of tongue twisters online, for free: The First International Collection of Tongue Twisters http://www.uebersetzung.at/twister/en.htm The Tongue Twister Database http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8136/tonguetwisters.html Thinks.com Tongue Twisters http://thinks.com/words/tonguetwisters.htm The EFL Playhouse: Tongue Twister Database for English Language Learners http://www.esl4kids.net/tongue.html Renato Ganoza for EF Zhengzhou, 2009

Some of my favorite tongue twisters: A quick witted cricket critic. Eleven benevolent elephants. He threw three free throws. Clowns grow glowing crowns. Sixty-six sick chicks. A proper cup of coffee from a proper copper coffee pot. Six sick hicks nick six slick bricks with picks and sticks. So, this is the sushi chef?

Can you think of any tongue twisters? 1. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Try to find five longer ones. 21. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 22. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 23. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 24. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 25. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Renato Ganoza for EF Zhengzhou, 2009