Top 15 Tongue Twisters in English: Advanced Pronunciation Lesson

Hi, I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com.  

If a black bug bleeds black blood, what color  does a blue bug bleed? Let's talk about it.  

What color does a blue bug bleed? Blue  bug bleed. Blue bug bleed. I have no clue.  

I am not a bug expert, but as you can imagine,  today, we are going to be talking about 15 common,  

fun English tongue twisters to help you improve  your pronunciation, and have a little bit of fun.  

Like always, I have created a free  PDF worksheet that you can download  

with the link in the description. You  will see all of today's tongue twisters,  

all of the pronunciation tips, and you can  answer Vanessa's challenge question at the  

bottom of the PDF worksheet, so that you  never forget what you've learned. All right.  

Are you ready for pronunciation fun? Let's start.  Our first three tongue twisters have to do with  

L and R. I'm going to read the first one,  then I'll give you some pronunciation tips.  

We'll practice it again, and then we'll go  on to the other L and R tongue twisters. 

All right. I'm going to read to you. Here's the  first one. How can a clam cram in clean cream can?  

One more time. How can a clam cram in a clean  cream can? Okay. Here we have a lot of R and  

L words. Clam, cram. These are called minimal  pairs. That means that the words sound almost  

exactly the same, except for one tricky  letter, R and L. So, when we say clam,  

this is that kind of almost like a mussel. You  can open it up, and it's a seafood. You can eat  

it. We can have your tongue between your teeth.  Clam, clam, and when you say cram, which is like  

to shove and push something into a small space,  you need to have a strong R sound. Cram. Imagine  

that angry dog. Crr, crr, cram. Let's say that one  one more time, and then we'll go on to the other  

two tongue twisters that include L and R. How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?  

All right. Are you ready for the next two? I'm  going to say them two times. The first time you  

can listen, and the second time I challenge you to  say it out loud with me. Here, it goes. A really  

leery Larry rolls readily to the road. Can you say  that with me? A really leery Larry rolls readily  

to the road. Hoo hoo. Let's go to the next one.  Lucky rabbits like to cause a ruckus. That's fun.  

The word ruckus means chaos or craziness. It's  a fun word. What's all this ruckus going on?  

Let's say that one one more time, and I challenge  you to say those L and R words out loud with me.  

Lucky rabbits like to cause a ruckus. Can you  say that really fast? Lucky rabbits like to  

cause a ruckus. Lucky rabbits like to cause a  ruckus. Lucky rabbits like to cause a ruckus. 

Okay. These tongue twister sentences are a  little bit silly, a little bit weird. So,  

I'd like to make it practical for you. Take a  look at this sentence. This is a sentence that you  

might actually say in daily life. I really like  the red one, but I think I like the yellow one  

better. This uses R sounds. Really, red, and  also L sounds. Like, yellow. Can you say that  

sentence with me? I really like the red one, but  I think I like the yellow one better. Great work.  

The next three tongue twisters have to do with an  S and Sh sounds. Take a look at this first one.  

Susie works in a shoeshine shop. Where she  shines she sits, and where she sits she shines.  

This one has so much potential for saying a  bad word. So, let's practice the S and the Sh. 

Susie sits, or we could say shoeshine. When you're  trying to get a baby to fall asleep, you say,  

shh, shhh, go to sleep. It's the exact  same sound on that we're working on. So,  

I'd like to say this tongue twister one more time,  and you can repeat it with me, and we'll go on to  

the other two in this category. Are you ready?  Get those muscles ready. Let's say it together.  

Susie works in a shoeshine shop. Where she  shines, she sits, and where she sits, she shines.  

Great work. All right, let's go to the other two  that include an S and Sh sound. So, this is the  

sushi chef. OH, this seems so short, but it's  so tricky. Can you say it out loud with me? So,  

this is the sushi chef. Sushi chef. Sushi chef.  So this is the sushi chef. Okay. Let's say the  

last one. We surely shall see the sunshine soon. Oh, my mouth is feeling it. Let's say it together.  

We surely shall see the sunshine soon. We  surely shall see the sunshine soon. We surely  

shall see the sunshine soon. Let's let's make  it practical. Let's take away all the silliness,  

and just make a sentence that you might say  in daily life. How about this? She's sitting  

on a seashell-shaped sofa. Okay. A seashell-  shaped sofa is a little tricky to say,  

but it could be something you say in daily  life. Can you say it with me? She's sitting  

on a seashell-shaped sofa. Great work. The next  three tongue twisters have a W, R and L sound. So,  

we already talked about R and L, but when we add  W, it's another level. Let's take a look at the  

first tongue twister, and then we'll talk about  it a bit. Wayne went to Wales to watch walruses. 

Wayne went to Wales to watch walruses. Did you  see my tongue come out when I said walruses?  

Walruses. So, here we are going from an L to  an R sound, and this word starts with a W.  

Make sure that when you say the W, Wooh, your  lips are puckered, kind of like a kissy face.  

Wayne went to Wales. Beautiful. Ooh.  Can you say the sentence with me?  

I believe you can. Let's say it together. Wayne  went to Wales to watch walruses. Okay. Let's go  

onto the other two that have a W, an R, and an  L. Here it goes. This one is very tricky for me.  

Lesser leather never weathered wetter  weather better. Oh my goodness.  

So, this is a talking about low quality-leather,  doesn't do well in the rain. It's going to  

disintegrate and not do well, but of course  it has to be said in a very tricky way. 

So, let's try to say this sentence  together. Are you ready? Let's go,  

lesser leather never weathered wetter weather  better. Oh, you did it. The last W, R,  

L tongue twister, whether the weather  is warm, whether the weather is hot,  

we have to put up with the weather, whether we  like it or not. I love this. It's a little rhyme  

too. Can you say this out loud with me? Let's try  it one more time. Whether the weather is warm,  

whether the weather is hot, we have to put up  with the weather, whether we like it or not.  

Okay, let's make this practical. Can you say this  sentence with me? I would really like to take the  

red wagon on a walk. One more time. I would really  to take the red wagon on a walk. Great work. Let's  

go to the next ones. The next two tongue twisters  have a lot of different vowels in them, and vowels  

are extremely tricky for English learners, because  they're all different in all different languages. 

So, take a look at this first tongue twister  and listen and carefully. The great Greek grape  

growers grow great Greek grapes. So, here we have  A, E, A, O. We have a lot of vows going on here.  

I want you to listen carefully,  and while we say this together,  

I think a good way to practice vowels is to really  move your mouth. I know some people, depending on  

your native language or your personality, feel  maybe a little sensitive about this. You want to  

keep your mouth quiet and closed, but when  you want to pronounce vowels accurately,  

you need to not be afraid to move your mouth  wide and tall. So, let's try to exaggerate a  

little bit, and try to say this silly tongue  twister with beautiful vowels. Are you ready? 

Say it with me. The great Greek grape growers  grow great Greek grapes. Do you see how much  

my mouth is moving? It's like, it's gone  to the gym. It's working out really hard.  

Let's say one more sentence that includes  a lot of different vowels. The next one is  

very silly. I'd like you to listen to me say  it, and then we'll try to say it together.  

Many and anemone sees an enemy anemone. An anemone  is a type of plant, animal that lives in a coral  

reef. It's a little bit of a tricky word to  say, but we're going to try to say it together,  

and especially with these vows, I want you to  enunciate very exaggerated and very clearly.  

Follow my mouth and try to say it at  the same time. Let's go. Many an anemone  

sees an enemy anemone. One more time, a little  faster. Many in the anemone sees an enemy anemone. 

Okay. Are you ready to make this practical? Let's  do it. Let's say this sentence together. Can you  

tell me why the cake is green? Why is there a  green cake? Maybe he likes green for his birthday.  

Well, here in the sentence, we have a lot  of different vowels, but they're not just  

tricky vows. They are normal vows for  daily life. So, let's say it again.  

Can you tell me why the cake is green? Let me  know. The next two tongue twisters include a sound  

beloved to by many English learners. It is Th. Are  you ready? Listen for the first tongue twister.  

The three thousand thieves thought  they took the throne this Thursday,  

look at my tongue when I say three thousand  thieves. My tongue is between my teeth  

and there is a stream of air. This is essential  for saying this Th sound. Three thousand thieves. 

Can you say it with me? Let's say this tongue  twister one more time, and then we'll go on to the  

next one. The three thousand thieves thought they  took throne this Thursday. All right. Let's go  

onto the next Th tongue twister. Listen carefully.  I thought I threw the thirty thrushes through  

the throng. Thrushes are birds, and a throng is  like a big group of people. So, for some reason,  

I'm throwing 30 birds through a group of people.  Very strange, but that's a tongue twister. So,  

let's say this sentence together, and I want you  to practice that Th with the clear stream of air  

coming out of your mouth. Are you ready? Let's  do it. I thought I threw the thirty thrushes  

through the throng. Can we say this really  fast? I thought I threw the thirty thrushes  

through the throne. One more time. I thought I  threw the thirty thrushes through the throng. 

I'm spitting a little bit. Let's make  it practical, and I want you to say  

this sentence with me. I thought this Thursday  was through already. Through means finished. Maybe  

you're having a really long Thursday, or you have  something exciting that's happening on Friday.  

You might say, Ugh. I thought this Thursday was  through already, but I still have more to do.  

I thought this Thursday was through  already. Beautiful. All right. Let's go  

to our last pair of tongue twisters, which  might be the most difficult yet. The last  

pair of tongue twisters includes S, K and X.  Listen carefully for this crazy tongue twister.  

I'll explain a little bit about how to pronounce  it, and then we'll practice it together.  

Are you ready? Drum roll. Got to prepare  myself physical and mentally for this.  

Okay. Let's say it. The chic Sikh's sixty-sixth  sheep is sick. Listen one more time. 

The chic Sikh's sixty-sixth sheep is sick. For  me, this is tricky too. All right. So, here we  

have the S the K and the X sound. Individually,  these can be okay. We have sss, kuh and kss,  

which combines K and S together, and when we  put all three of these sounds in one sentence,  

it takes it over the top. So, can you say  this with me? Let's have a little fun. Say  

the sentence with me. The chic Sikh's sixty-sixth  sheep is sick. Probably the trickiest word here  

is sixth. We have six, and then we add that  beautiful Th sound that we just practiced.  

Sixth, sixth, sixth. Let's say  it all together. One more time.  

The chic Sikh's ... if I can say it,  sorry. One more time. The chic Sikh's  

sixty-sixth sheep is sick. Oh my goodness. Let's  move on from that one, and go to the next one.  

Listen, carefully. Six sick hicks nick  six slick bricks with picks and sticks. 

Oh my goodness. Here, we're talking about six  people who are banging bricks and chipping off or  

breaking little pieces with picks and sticks. The  meaning doesn't matter so much, as how crazy this  

is to say. So, are you ready for this ultimate  challenge? Let's say together a couple times,  

if I can do it. Let's try it. Six sick hicks  nick six slick bricks with picks and sticks. One  

more time. This is the final challenge. Six sick  hicks nick six slick bricks with picks and sticks.  

Ooh. We made it. Okay. Let's make it practical,  and try to say this sentence with me. I asked her  

for six stacks of cake, but she gave me 16 cakes  instead. Can you say it again with me? I asked her  

for six stacks of cake, but she gave me 16 cakes  instead. All right. You made it. Congratulations,  

and I think I want to say that to myself too. Congratulations, Vanessa. You did it. You  

finished all these tongue twisters. So, now I have  a question for you. Let me know in the comments,  

which one of these tongue twisters  was the most difficult for you. If  

the tongue twister was difficult for you,  I challenge you to go back and practice it,  

and especially practice the practical sentence,  because this is what you are more likely to use  

in daily life, and it just makes pronunciation  fun. So, don't forget to download the free PDF  

worksheet for today's lesson, with all of these  tongue twisters, pronunciation tips, and you can  

answer Vanessa's challenge question at the bottom  of the worksheet, so that you never forget what  

you've learned, and you can have a good laugh. Well, thank you so much for learning English with  

me, and I'll see you again next Friday for a new  lesson here on my YouTube channel. Bye. The next  

step is to download the free PDF worksheet for  this lesson. With this free PDF, you will master  

today's lesson, and never forget what you have  learned. You can be a confident English speaker.  

Don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel  for a free English lesson every Friday. Bye.