1447:
665:
contains increasingly convoluted tongue twisters as the show progresses. The lines are often delivered by
Princess Carolyn, and a notable set involves the actress 'Courtney Portnoy', for example: "How would you enjoy joining Portnoy for a scorched soy porterhouse pork four-courser at Koi?" followed
554:
is a form of
Mandarin Chinese tongue twister, written in Classical Chinese. Due to Mandarin Chinese having only four tonal ranges (compared to nine in Cantonese, for example), these works sound like a work of one syllable in different tonal range when spoken in Mandarin, but are far more
42:. Additionally, they can be used as exercises to improve pronunciation and fluency. Some tongue twisters produce results that are humorous (or humorously vulgar) when they are mispronounced, while others simply rely on the confusion and mistakes of the speaker for their amusement value.
78:
These deliberately difficult expressions were popular in the 19th century. The popular "she sells seashells" tongue twister was originally published in 1850 as a diction exercise. The term "tongue twister" was first applied to this kind of expression in 1895.
224:
Some tongue twisters take the form of words or short phrases which become tongue twisters when repeated rapidly (the game is often expressed in the form "Say this phrase three (or five, or ten, etc.) times as fast as you can!"). Examples include:
372:, and many more. These sounds are most likely to transform to a similar sound when placed in near vicinity of each other. Most of these mix-ups can be attributed to the two phonemes having similar areas of articulation in the mouth.
647:. The premise was Webb (as Sgt. Joe Friday) grilling Carson about "kleptomaniac Claude Cooper from Cleveland, who copped clean copper clappers kept in a closet." The sketch was regularly shown on anniversary specials.
422:
It is common for more difficult sounds to be replaced with strong consonants in tongue twisters. This is partially determinant of which sounds are most likely to transform to other sounds with linguistic confusion.
146:
66:, or other features of a spoken language in order to be difficult to articulate. For example, the following sentence was said to be "the most difficult of common English-language tongue twisters" by
468:
vowels differ by length so tongue twisters exploit vowel length: "Akawala akaawa Kaawa kaawa akaawa ka wa?". Translation: "The girl who gave Kaawa bitter coffee, where is she from?"
836:
1066:
749:
1033:
1437:
1004:
1395:
1302:
1366:
138:
that require repositioning the tongue between syllables, then the same sounds are repeated in a different sequence. An example of this is the song "
637:
1436:
1332:
1123:
185:
832:
621:
1452:
809:
1374:
1277:
1244:
951:
890:
1056:
739:
82:"She sells seashells" was turned into a popular song in 1908, with words by British songwriter Terry Sullivan and music by
1023:
332:
Based on the MIT confusion matrix of 1620 single phoneme errors, the phoneme with the greatest margin of speech error is
782:
1471:
1146:"Twisting tongues and memories: Explorations of the relationship between language production and verbal working memory"
90:, an early fossil collector. However, there is no evidence that Anning inspired either the tongue twister or the song.
974:
918:
617:
1391:
869:
511:("stick a finger through the throat") is difficult for a non-native speaker due to the absence of vowels, although
83:
274:
Other types of tongue twisters derive their humor from producing vulgar results only when performed incorrectly:
1494:
1294:
1096:"The limited use of distinctive features and markedness in speech production: evidence from speech error data"
701:
1467:
1298:
596:
540:
416:
656:, both Pinky and Brain go through a collage of tongue twisters that cover almost every category possible.
507:
1324:
581:
1479:
1095:
551:
1499:
696:
652:
456:
441:
770:
716:
678:
512:
67:
625:
204:
on the
November/December 1979 issue and was announced the winner on the March/April 1980 issue:
1370:
1273:
1183:
1165:
1115:
1028:
996:
864:
484:
375:
Pronunciation difficulty is also theorized to have an effect on tongue twisters. For example,
1392:"BoJack Horseman is famous for being emotionally wrenching. But it's also ridiculously funny"
1236:
1173:
1157:
1107:
986:
932:
904:
643:
516:
432:
399:
35:
1061:
805:
661:
503:
495:
447:
216:
1201:
Wainaina, Michael. Peek, Philip; Yankah, Kwesi (eds.). "Tongue
Twisters in East Africa".
666:
by "Glorify your source, but don't make it feel forced, of course. And try the borscht!"
1178:
1145:
923:
895:
499:
480:
302:
Some twisters are amusing because they sound incorrect even when pronounced correctly:
200:
1111:
1488:
1362:
1240:
670:
528:
173:
1221:
464:
The complexity of tongue twisters varies from language to language. For example, in
1222:"Tongue-Twister Effects in the Silent Reading of Hearing and Deaf College Students"
691:
609:
587:
483:
of that language to say might be regarded as a type of tongue-twist. An example is
139:
127:
1435:
706:
605:
569:
280:
107:
87:
991:
266:
Tongue twisters are used to train pronunciation skills in non-native speakers:
17:
1354:
1161:
711:
674:
601:
565:
476:
1169:
1119:
1000:
947:
774:
479:, that is, phrases in a language that are difficult for someone who is not a
314:
In 2013, MIT researchers claimed that this is the trickiest twister to date:
1206:
1024:"MIT Researchers Say They Have Created The Trickiest Tongue Twister To Date"
632:
576:
177:
159:
Betty Botter bought a bit of butter. "But," she said, "this butter's bitter!
86:. According to folklore, it was said to be inspired by the life and work of
50:
Some tongue twisters rely on rapid alternation between similar but distinct
39:
1455:
was created from a revision of this article dated 29 October 2023
1187:
1008:
859:
210:
63:
624:") into a song and dance number along with his best friend Cosmo Brown (
62:), combining two different alternation patterns, familiar constructs in
673:. A commonly used tongue twister is "Peter Piper", as seen in the 1986
613:
465:
51:
975:"Tongue Twister, Students' Pronunciation Ability, and Learning Styles"
254:
Some tongue twisters are used for speech practice and vocal warmup:
608:, while learning proper diction so he can make the transition from
135:
131:
74:
The seething sea ceaseth and thus the seething sea sufficeth us.
833:"She Sells Seashells and Mary Anning: Metafolklore with a Twist"
340:. Other phonemes that had a high level of speech error include
744:
539:
is a tongue twister in
English as well as a finger-fumbler in
27:
Phrase that is intentionally difficult to articulate properly
1433:
1094:
Shattuck-Hufnagel, Stefanie; Klatt, Dennis H. (1979-02-01).
167:
So 'twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter.
165:
And she put it in her batter, and her batter was not bitter.
163:
So she bought a bit of butter better than her bitter butter,
973:
Mu’in, Fatchul; Amrina, Rosyi; Amelia, Rizky (2017-12-04).
1144:
Acheson, Daniel J.; MacDonald, Maryellen C. (April 2009).
1480:
Interview with MIT researcher
Stefanie Shattuck-Hufnagel
161:
If I put it in my batter, it will make my batter bitter!"
38:
properly, and can be used as a type of spoken (or sung)
121:
Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked
1057:"Can You Tackle the World's Trickiest Tongue Twister?"
948:"David Gordon's Favorite Vocal Warmup Tongue Twisters"
579:
contain a significant number of tongue twisters, with
402:
are the classification of strong and weak consonants.
391:
or when trying to pronounce certain tongue twisters.
270:
The sheep on the ship slipped on the sheet of sleet.
405:Some characteristics of strong consonants include:
191:
A woodchuck would chuck all the wood he could chuck
740:"Speech Science: Tongue Twisters and Valley Girls"
515:is a common sound in Czech, Slovak and some other
669:Many examples of tongue twisters can be found in
431:Tongue twisters exist in many languages, such as
383:. As a result, speakers may naturally transform
34:is a phrase that is designed to be difficult to
555:comprehensible when spoken in another dialect.
316:
304:
290:
276:
268:
256:
206:
182:
156:
119:If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers
112:
92:
72:
1446:
1100:Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior
97:The shells she sells are sea-shells, I'm sure.
8:
1293:Aristar, Anthony; Dry, Helen (27 May 1991).
1007:from the original on 2021-06-25 – via
261:the tip of the tongue, the teeth, the lips.
219:of Scott's Schnapps stopped Schwab's watch.
117:A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked
115:Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers
99:For if she sells sea-shells by the sea-shore
531:equivalent of a tongue twister is called a
412:earlier development in language acquisition
307:Are you copperbottoming those pans, my man?
259:The lips, the teeth, the tip of the tongue,
198:The following twister entered a contest in
650:In the episode "You Said a Mouseful" from
379:is thought to be easier to pronounce than
297:Three smart fellers, they all felt smart.
126:Many tongue twisters use a combination of
101:Then I'm sure she sells sea-shore shells.
1177:
990:
734:
732:
535:. According to Susan Fischer, the phrase
490:("a frog croaks in the water"), in which
1463:, and does not reflect subsequent edits.
1367:Continuum International Publishing Group
295:Two smart fellers, they both felt smart,
728:
638:The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1398:from the original on 21 September 2019
1089:
1087:
1085:
1083:
106:Another well-known tongue twister is "
95:She sells sea-shells by the sea-shore.
1390:Caroline Framke (14 September 2017).
186:How much wood would a woodchuck chuck
134:. They have two or more sequences of
7:
1335:from the original on 25 October 2020
172:There are twisters that make use of
954:from the original on 9 October 2021
622:Moses supposes his toeses are roses
812:from the original on 24 March 2012
244:Irish wristwatch, Swiss wristwatch
25:
1055:Grossman, Samantha (2013-12-05).
1036:from the original on 8 April 2015
1022:Annear, Steve (5 December 2013).
839:from the original on 29 June 2018
193:if a woodchuck would chuck wood.
1445:
1305:from the original on 4 July 2010
1203:Encyclopedia of African Folklore
785:from the original on 21 May 2009
604:) uses tongue twisters, such as
318:Pad kid poured curd pulled cold
309:No, I'm aluminiuming 'em Ma'am.
293:One smart feller, he felt smart,
279:Old Mother Hunt had a rough cut
189:if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
1250:from the original on 2020-11-11
1126:from the original on 2022-05-10
1069:from the original on 2020-09-29
872:from the original on 2014-11-12
831:Stephen Winick (26 July 2017).
752:from the original on 2018-04-02
209:Shep Schwab shopped at Scott's
1229:Journal of Memory and Language
1150:Journal of Memory and Language
891:"New Twist on Tongue Twisters"
620:. He also turns one of them ("
572:song titled "Tongue Twisters".
488:baq'aq'i ts'q'alshi q'iq'inebs
323:Linguistics of tongue twisters
1:
1112:10.1016/S0022-5371(79)90554-1
641:and took part in a parody of
591:being the most extreme cases.
446:'tongue jammer', and
1325:"15 Chinese Tongue Twisters"
1241:10.1016/0749-596X(91)90039-M
409:high frequency in a language
154:), first published in 1899:
1257:– via Google Scholar.
931:(16): 64. 1980 – via
903:(14): 92. 1979 – via
600:, movie star Don Lockwood (
241:Red leather, yellow leather
1516:
979:Arab World English Journal
461:'tongue breaker'.
238:A proper copper coffee pot
1162:10.1016/j.jml.2008.12.002
1359:Dr. Seuss: American Icon
1268:Roper, Jonathan (2011).
992:10.24093/awej/vol8no4.25
575:The children's books by
46:Types of tongue twisters
1295:"Linguist List, Vol. 2"
1272:. Springer. p. 8.
1270:Alliteration in Culture
858:Wells, Carolyn (1899).
498:. Another example, the
415:lower placement on the
250:Red lorry, yellow lorry
1441:
1421:Listen to this article
1299:University of Michigan
1220:Hanson, Vicki (1991).
451:
436:
417:phonological hierarchy
320:
312:
300:
289:
286:But a rough cut punt.
272:
264:
222:
196:
170:
124:
104:
76:
1440:
779:williampoundstone.net
702:Barbara's Rhubarb Bar
537:Good blood, bad blood
284:Not a punt cut rough,
1472:More spoken articles
552:One-syllable article
547:One-syllable article
806:"The Fossil Hunter"
771:Poundstone, William
653:Pinky and the Brain
597:Singin' in the Rain
582:Oh Say Can You Say?
1442:
1331:. September 2020.
717:Theophilus Thistle
559:In popular culture
508:strÄŤ prst skrz krk
68:William Poundstone
1438:
919:"Contest Results"
865:Project Gutenberg
860:"The Jingle Book"
804:Shelley Emmling.
594:In the 1952 film
460:
445:
16:(Redirected from
1507:
1462:
1460:
1449:
1448:
1439:
1429:
1427:
1422:
1408:
1407:
1405:
1403:
1387:
1381:
1380:
1351:
1345:
1344:
1342:
1340:
1321:
1315:
1314:
1312:
1310:
1290:
1284:
1283:
1265:
1259:
1258:
1256:
1255:
1249:
1226:
1217:
1211:
1210:
1198:
1192:
1191:
1181:
1141:
1135:
1134:
1132:
1131:
1091:
1078:
1077:
1075:
1074:
1052:
1046:
1045:
1043:
1041:
1019:
1013:
1012:
994:
970:
964:
963:
961:
959:
943:
937:
936:
933:Internet Archive
915:
909:
908:
905:Internet Archive
887:
881:
880:
878:
877:
855:
849:
848:
846:
844:
828:
822:
821:
819:
817:
801:
795:
794:
792:
790:
767:
761:
760:
758:
757:
736:
697:Announcer's test
517:Slavic languages
455:
440:
400:Fortis and lenis
395:Fortis and lenis
153:
152:
151:
149:
21:
1515:
1514:
1510:
1509:
1508:
1506:
1505:
1504:
1495:Tongue twisters
1485:
1484:
1476:
1475:
1464:
1458:
1456:
1453:This audio file
1450:
1443:
1434:
1431:
1425:
1424:
1420:
1417:
1412:
1411:
1401:
1399:
1389:
1388:
1384:
1377:
1353:
1352:
1348:
1338:
1336:
1323:
1322:
1318:
1308:
1306:
1292:
1291:
1287:
1280:
1267:
1266:
1262:
1253:
1251:
1247:
1224:
1219:
1218:
1214:
1200:
1199:
1195:
1143:
1142:
1138:
1129:
1127:
1093:
1092:
1081:
1072:
1070:
1054:
1053:
1049:
1039:
1037:
1021:
1020:
1016:
972:
971:
967:
957:
955:
946:Gordon, David.
945:
944:
940:
917:
916:
912:
889:
888:
884:
875:
873:
857:
856:
852:
842:
840:
830:
829:
825:
815:
813:
803:
802:
798:
788:
786:
769:
768:
764:
755:
753:
738:
737:
730:
725:
688:
662:BoJack Horseman
626:Donald O'Connor
561:
549:
525:
523:Finger-fumblers
496:uvular ejective
474:
429:
427:Other languages
397:
330:
325:
311:
308:
299:
296:
294:
288:
285:
283:
263:
260:
235:Unique New York
221:
214:
195:
192:
190:
188:
180:, for example:
169:
166:
164:
162:
160:
147:
145:
144:
143:
123:
120:
118:
116:
103:
100:
98:
96:
48:
28:
23:
22:
18:Tongue-twisters
15:
12:
11:
5:
1513:
1511:
1503:
1502:
1497:
1487:
1486:
1483:
1482:
1465:
1451:
1444:
1432:
1419:
1418:
1416:
1415:External links
1413:
1410:
1409:
1382:
1375:
1369:. p. 27.
1346:
1316:
1285:
1278:
1260:
1235:(3): 319–330.
1212:
1193:
1156:(3): 329–350.
1136:
1079:
1047:
1014:
985:(4): 365–383.
965:
938:
924:Games Magazine
910:
896:Games Magazine
882:
850:
823:
796:
775:"The Ultimate"
762:
727:
726:
724:
721:
720:
719:
714:
709:
704:
699:
694:
687:
684:
683:
682:
667:
659:The TV series
657:
648:
629:
592:
573:
560:
557:
548:
545:
533:finger-fumbler
524:
521:
481:native speaker
473:
470:
428:
425:
420:
419:
413:
410:
396:
393:
329:
326:
324:
321:
305:
291:
277:
257:
252:
251:
248:
245:
242:
239:
236:
233:
232:Cricket critic
230:
207:
201:Games Magazine
183:
174:compound words
157:
113:
93:
47:
44:
32:tongue twister
26:
24:
14:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
1512:
1501:
1498:
1496:
1493:
1492:
1490:
1481:
1478:
1477:
1473:
1469:
1454:
1414:
1402:September 26,
1397:
1393:
1386:
1383:
1378:
1376:9780826417084
1372:
1368:
1364:
1363:New York City
1360:
1356:
1350:
1347:
1334:
1330:
1326:
1320:
1317:
1304:
1300:
1296:
1289:
1286:
1281:
1279:9780230305878
1275:
1271:
1264:
1261:
1246:
1242:
1238:
1234:
1230:
1223:
1216:
1213:
1208:
1204:
1197:
1194:
1189:
1185:
1180:
1175:
1171:
1167:
1163:
1159:
1155:
1151:
1147:
1140:
1137:
1125:
1121:
1117:
1113:
1109:
1105:
1101:
1097:
1090:
1088:
1086:
1084:
1080:
1068:
1064:
1063:
1058:
1051:
1048:
1035:
1031:
1030:
1025:
1018:
1015:
1010:
1006:
1002:
998:
993:
988:
984:
980:
976:
969:
966:
953:
949:
942:
939:
934:
930:
926:
925:
920:
914:
911:
906:
902:
898:
897:
892:
886:
883:
871:
867:
866:
861:
854:
851:
838:
834:
827:
824:
811:
807:
800:
797:
784:
780:
776:
772:
766:
763:
751:
747:
746:
741:
735:
733:
729:
722:
718:
715:
713:
710:
708:
705:
703:
700:
698:
695:
693:
690:
689:
685:
680:
676:
672:
671:hip hop music
668:
664:
663:
658:
655:
654:
649:
646:
645:
640:
639:
634:
630:
627:
623:
619:
615:
611:
607:
603:
599:
598:
593:
590:
589:
584:
583:
578:
574:
571:
567:
563:
562:
558:
556:
553:
546:
544:
542:
538:
534:
530:
529:sign language
522:
520:
518:
514:
510:
509:
505:
501:
497:
493:
489:
486:
482:
478:
471:
469:
467:
462:
458:
453:
452:Zungenbrecher
449:
443:
438:
434:
426:
424:
418:
414:
411:
408:
407:
406:
403:
401:
394:
392:
390:
386:
382:
378:
373:
371:
367:
363:
359:
355:
351:
347:
344:mistaken for
343:
339:
336:mistaken for
335:
327:
322:
319:
315:
310:
303:
298:
287:
282:
275:
271:
267:
262:
255:
249:
247:Peggy Babcock
246:
243:
240:
237:
234:
231:
228:
227:
226:
220:
218:
212:
205:
203:
202:
194:
187:
181:
179:
175:
168:
155:
150:
141:
137:
133:
129:
122:
111:
109:
102:
91:
89:
85:
84:Harry Gifford
80:
75:
71:
69:
65:
61:
57:
53:
45:
43:
41:
37:
33:
19:
1400:. Retrieved
1385:
1358:
1349:
1337:. Retrieved
1328:
1319:
1307:. Retrieved
1288:
1269:
1263:
1252:. Retrieved
1232:
1228:
1215:
1202:
1196:
1153:
1149:
1139:
1128:. Retrieved
1106:(1): 41–55.
1103:
1099:
1071:. Retrieved
1060:
1050:
1038:. Retrieved
1027:
1017:
982:
978:
968:
956:. Retrieved
941:
928:
922:
913:
900:
894:
885:
874:. Retrieved
863:
853:
841:. Retrieved
826:
814:. Retrieved
799:
787:. Retrieved
778:
765:
754:. Retrieved
743:
692:Alliteration
660:
651:
642:
636:
610:silent films
595:
588:Fox in Socks
586:
580:
550:
536:
532:
526:
506:
491:
487:
475:
463:
437:trabalenguas
430:
421:
404:
398:
388:
384:
380:
376:
374:
369:
365:
361:
357:
353:
349:
345:
341:
337:
333:
331:
317:
313:
306:
301:
292:
278:
273:
269:
265:
258:
253:
223:
208:
199:
197:
184:
171:
158:
140:Betty Botter
128:alliteration
125:
114:
105:
94:
81:
77:
73:
59:
55:
49:
31:
29:
1355:Nel, Philip
1339:6 September
707:Malapropism
679:Peter Piper
635:guested on
616:" in 1920s
606:Peter Piper
570:Sylvia Fine
568:recorded a
477:Shibboleths
472:Shibboleths
108:Peter Piper
88:Mary Anning
1500:Word games
1489:Categories
1468:Audio help
1459:2023-10-29
1254:2019-01-28
1209:: 947–949.
1130:2020-10-10
1073:2024-06-04
876:2024-06-04
816:9 December
756:2018-04-05
723:References
712:Spoonerism
675:Run-D.M.C.
602:Gene Kelly
566:Danny Kaye
513:syllabic r
176:and their
36:articulate
1207:Routledge
1170:0749-596X
1120:0022-5371
1001:2229-9327
633:Jack Webb
631:In 1968,
618:Hollywood
577:Dr. Seuss
64:loanwords
40:word game
1470: ·
1396:Archived
1357:(2005).
1333:Archived
1309:13 March
1303:Archived
1245:Archived
1188:21165150
1124:Archived
1067:Archived
1034:Archived
1009:SocArXiv
1005:Archived
958:28 April
952:Archived
870:Archived
837:Archived
810:Archived
789:13 March
783:Archived
750:Archived
686:See also
564:In 1951
485:Georgian
328:Phonemes
229:Toy boat
211:Schnapps
52:phonemes
1457: (
1428:minutes
1394:. Vox.
1179:3001594
1040:4 April
843:29 June
644:Dragnet
614:talkies
466:Buganda
459:
444:
433:Spanish
54:(e.g.,
1373:
1329:maayot
1276:
1186:
1176:
1168:
1118:
1029:Boston
999:
677:song "
585:, and
504:Slovak
448:German
148:listen
136:sounds
1248:(PDF)
1225:(PDF)
500:Czech
494:is a
213:shop;
178:stems
132:rhyme
1404:2019
1371:ISBN
1341:2020
1311:2010
1274:ISBN
1184:PMID
1166:ISSN
1116:ISSN
1062:TIME
1042:2015
997:ISSN
960:2021
845:2018
818:2010
791:2010
612:to "
527:The
502:and
457:lit.
442:lit.
368:for
360:for
352:for
281:punt
217:shot
215:One
130:and
58:and
1237:doi
1174:PMC
1158:doi
1108:doi
987:doi
745:NPR
541:ASL
387:to
142:" (
110:":
1491::
1426:11
1365::
1361:.
1327:.
1301:.
1297:.
1243:.
1233:30
1231:.
1227:.
1205:.
1182:.
1172:.
1164:.
1154:60
1152:.
1148:.
1122:.
1114:.
1104:18
1102:.
1098:.
1082:^
1065:.
1059:.
1032:.
1026:.
1003:.
995:.
981:.
977:.
950:.
927:.
921:.
899:.
893:.
868:.
862:.
835:.
808:.
781:.
777:.
773:.
748:.
742:.
731:^
681:".
628:).
543:.
519:.
492:q'
454:,
450::
439:,
435::
385:ch
381:ch
364:,
356:,
348:,
346:sh
70:.
60:sh
30:A
1474:)
1466:(
1461:)
1430:)
1423:(
1406:.
1379:.
1343:.
1313:.
1282:.
1239::
1190:.
1160::
1133:.
1110::
1076:.
1044:.
1011:.
989::
983:8
962:.
935:.
929:4
907:.
901:3
879:.
847:.
820:.
793:.
759:.
389:t
377:t
370:r
366:w
362:l
358:r
354:p
350:f
342:s
338:r
334:l
56:s
20:)
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.