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CLASSIC TONGUE TWISTERS

Here are some classic tongue-twisters that I did not invent, but can say perfectly:

  • "Toy boat, toy boat, toy boat."
  • "You know New York. You need New York. You know you need unique New York"
  • "Red Leather, Yellow Leather."
  • "I slit the sheet, the sheet I slit, and on the slitted sheet I sit."
  • "One smart fellow - he felt smart.
    Two smart fellows - both felt smart.
    Three smart fellows - they all felt smart."
  • "I am not the pheasant plucker,
    I'm the pheasant plucker's mate.
    I am only plucking pheasants
    'cause the pheasant-pluckers late."
  • "The sixth sick sheikh's sixth sheep's sick."
  • "A quick-witted cricket critic."
  • "One black bug bled blue blood, one blue bug bled black blood."
  • "A Swiss watch,
    a wristwatch,
    a Swiss wristwatch."
  • "sunshine city, sunshine city, sunshine city."
  • "rubber baby buggy bumpers.
  • "a box of biscuits,
    a boxed of mixed biscuits,
    and a biscuit mixer."
  • "A proper cup of coffee from a proper copper coffee pot"
  • "Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better."
  • "A Tudor who tooted the flute
    tried to tutor two tooters to toot.
    Said the two to the tutor:
    'Is it harder to toot or
    to tutor two tooters to toot?'"
  • "A nurse anesthetist unearthed a nest."
  • "The crow flew over the river with a lump of raw liver."

Here are some tongue-twisters that I invented:
Try to say them three times fast...

  • "Crumbling Munchkin Skin."
  • "How many ditches could a ditch witch dig if a ditch-witch could dig ditches?"
  • "Pewter Ladel."
  • "The Mulch Pile Firefighters."
  • "Senseless Census."
  • "Husk Shuckers."
  • "Lackadaisical Laxative."

This is a diction test for would-be radio announcers: To be read clearly, without any mistakes, in under 20 seconds. (Taken from Coronet Magazine, August 1948) OH, by the way... I can do this...:):

  • I bought a bit of baking powder and baked a batch of biscuits. I brought a big basket of biscuits back to the bakery and baked a basket of big biscuits. Then I took the big basket of biscuits and the basket of big biscuits and mixed the big biscuits with the basket of biscuits that was next to the big basket and put a bunch of biscuits from the basket into a biscuit mixer and brought the basket of biscuits and the box of mixed biscuits and the biscuit mixer to the bakery and opened a tin of sardines.