50 tough tongue twisters to challenge yourself and your friends
From the world’s toughest tongue twister (“Pad kid poured curd pulled cod”) to childhood classics (“Sally sells seashells by the seashore”), tongue twisters are aplenty in the English language.
Sometimes used as a tool to work on pronunciation and fluency when you’re learning a new language, and sometimes just a fun word game for kids or kids at heart, tongue twisters amuse and challenge big-time chatterers with a cascade of captivating and comical linguistic conundrums. In fact, TODAY show host Dylan Dreyer is quite the pro at “A box of biscuits, a box of mixed biscuits, and a biscuit mixer,” and once tested her fellow co-hosts to see how they could hold their own at the gibberish jamboree.
Ahead, we’ve got 50 tongue twisters for you to try on your own, share with loved ones or with English second-language (ESL) speakers in your inner orbit to hone their tongue-tango talents. There’s quite the high frequency of seashells, bivalves and fish in the mix, if you ask us, but you can also expect some fishermen-free phrases, too. Across the spectrum of newcomer classics like “Dashing down the Davos slopes…” to old favorites like “unique New York,” keep reading for tongue twisters that are sure to please all palates.
50 tongue twisters to try today
Sally sells seashells by the seashore.
Red leather, yellow leather.
Red lorry, yellow lorry.
Unique New York.
Sassy Sam swiftly sells seven slippery, silver skates.
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear. Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair. Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn’t very fuzzy, was he?
A proper copper coffee pot.
How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?
How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
The big brown bear brushed his brown fur beside the babbling brook.
The fine, fresh fisherman fished for fresh fish.
Fred fed Ted bread, and Ted fed Fred bread.
A happy hippo hopped and he hiccuped.
Four furious friends fought for the phone.
Which witch switched the Swiss wristwatches?
Thirty-three thieves threw the toad that Thursday.
An enthusiastic astronaut asked another astronaut, “Are our astronauts enthusiastic?”
Amidst the bustling boroughs, busy taxis boldly blend.
Catskill kids climb craggy cliffs, conquering countless challenges.
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.
Rubber baby-buggy bumpers.
A platter of perfectly prepared pancakes.
Irish wristwatch, Swiss wristwatch.
A synonym for cinnamon.
The big brown bear brushed his brown fur beside the babbling brook.
Pad kid poured curd pulled cod.
Rural juror.
A box of biscuits, a box of mixed biscuits, and a biscuit mixer.
Whisking the risky whiskey river with quivering whiskers.
The top cop saw a cop top.
Three grey geese in a green field grazing.
Cooks cook cupcakes quickly.
Double bubble gum, bubbles double.
Six slippery snails slid slowly seaward.
Wayne went to Wales to watch walruses.
Frieda fried fresh fish for Frank.
Moses supposes his toes are roses, but Moses supposes erroneously.
She sees cheese.
Six Czech cricket critics.
He threw three free throws.
Selfish shellfish.
The great Greek grape growers grow great Greek grapes.
Betty bought a bit of butter. But the butter Betty bought was bitter.
Dashing down the Davos slopes, daring Davos daredevils deftly demonstrate downhill delights during the dazzling Davos winter days.
Yankee yodelers yawned yesterday, yet yearning Yankees yelped, yielding yellow yoyos yawningly yesterday.
Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager managing an imaginary menagerie
Bouncing baby bundles blissfully babble, burble, and beam, bringing boundless joy to beaming parents in their bumbling baby dream.
Any noise annoys an oyster but a noisy noise annoys an oyster more.
Eddie edited it.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
