Tongue Twisters are a great tool for practising students’ speaking skills. It is also a playful test for improving learners’ fluency. Here are 35 tongue twisters to have fun in class.
Tongue twisters help students to:
> practice pronunciation and fluency
> improve articulation and enunciation
> expand vocabulary and learn new expressions
> develop language ability
Tongue Twisters:
- Around the rugged rocks the ragged rascal ran.
- A big black bug bit a big black bear, made the big black bear bleed blood.
- Which witch wished which wicked wish?
- Black bugs blood.
- Brad’s big black bath brush broke.
- A cheap ship trip.
- So, this is the sushi chef.
- The crow flew over the river with a lump of raw liver.
- Ed had edited it.
- Fat frogs flying past fast.
- Fred fed Ted bread, and Ted fed Fred bread.
- Zany zippy zappy zebras
- Girl gargoyle, guy gargoyle.
- Good blood, bad blood.
- Greek grapes.
- How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? He would chuck, he would, as much as he could, and chuck as much wood as a woodchuck would if a woodchuck could chuck wood.
- I can think of six thin things and of six thick things too.
- If one doctor doctors another doctor, does the doctor who doctors the doctor doctor the doctor the way the doctor he is doctoring doctors? Or does he doctor the doctor the way the doctor who doctors doctors?
- If Stu chews shoes, should Stu choose the shoes he chews?
- Unique New York.
- Irish wristwatch.
- I saw Esau kissing Kate. I saw Esau, he saw me, and she saw I saw Esau.
- I slit the sheet, the sheet I slit, and on the slitted sheet I sit.
- The Leith police dismisseth us.
- Nine nice night nurses nursing nicely.
- One-One was a racehorse; Two-Two was one, too. When One-One won one race one day, Two-Two won one, too.
- On mules we find two legs behind and two we find before. We stand behind before we find what those behind be for.
- Thieves seize skis.
- Please pay promptly.
- Preshrunk silk shirts.
- A proper cup of coffee from a proper copper coffee pot.
- Swan swam over the sea. Swim, swan, swim! Swan swam back again. Well swum, swan!
- She stood on the balcony inexplicably mimicking him hiccupping, and amicably welcoming him home.
- The sinking steamer sank.
- Six short slow shepherds.
Tongue Twisters: Ice-breakers and Speaking Activities in EFL Classes
Use tongue twisters as an ice breaker or closing speaking activity. If you think that your students will enjoy it, you can hold a competition and do a tongue twister every week. At the end of the semester, you can vote for the class tongue twister champion!
For best results of the single liners, say each one 5 times in quick succession. Some of the seemingly simplest are the most difficult to repeat.
For extra fun: Encourage students to write their own tongue twister, perhaps beginning each with a name. E.g. Sakis sings short silly songs
