Tongue twisters in English and Spanish: Have fun improving your language skills

Tongue twisters aren’t just fun but also fantastic for improving pronunciation, speed, and speaking confidence. Whether you’re learning English or Spanish, adding tongue twisters to your daily practice will give your tongue a workout like never before. In this guide, you’ll find tongue twisters in English and Spanish for all levels.

Quick tongue twister table

English tongue twisters

English has plenty of tongue twisters to help you practice difficult sounds like "th," "sh," and "r." Here are several examples ranging from easy to "so-hard-you-might-cry."

1. Easy tongue twisters

These are perfect for beginners who want to build confidence.

• "How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?"
• "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream."
• "Six sticky skeletons."

2. Short tongue twisters

Perfect for quick practice sessions.

• "Red lorry, yellow lorry."
• "Toy boat, toy boat, toy boat."
• "Which wristwatches are Swiss wristwatches?"

3. Difficult tongue twisters

Here’s where things get tricky!

• "Betty Botter bought some butter, but she said the butter’s bitter."
• "The thirty-three thieves thought that they thrilled the throne throughout Thursday."
• "She sees cheese, she sees seashells, she sees seesaws."

4. The hardest tongue twisters

These will test even the most advanced speakers.

• "The sixth sick sheikh’s sixth sheep’s sick."
• "Unique New York, unique New York, you know you need unique New York."
• "Can you can a can as a canner can can a can?"

Spanish tongue twisters

Spanish tongue twisters often test your ability to roll "r" sounds and handle tricky consonant combinations. Here are some great examples to practice, with their translations to English.

1. Easy Tongue Twisters

Perfect to get started and stay motivated.

• "Pancha plancha con cuatro planchas."(Pancha irons with four irons.)
• "Mi mamá me mima mucho."(My mom pampers me a lot.)
• "A Cuesta le cuesta subir la cuesta y en medio de la cuesta, Cuesta va y se acuesta."(Cuesta struggles to climb the slope, and in the middle of the slope, Cuesta lies down.)

2. Short Tongue Twisters

Do you dare to try them without messing up?

• "Tres tristes tigres."(Three sad tigers.)
• "El perro de San Roque no tiene rabo."(The dog of San Roque has no tail.)
• "Erre con erre cigarro."(R with R cigar.)

3. Difficult Tongue Twisters

For those looking for a real challenge.

• "El cielo está enladrillado, ¿quién lo desenladrillará? El desenladrillador que lo desenladrille, buen desenladrillador será."(The sky is bricked up, who will unbrick it? The one who unbricks the bricks will be a good unbricker.)
• "Compadre, cómpreme un coco; compadre, coco no compro, porque el que poco coco come, poco coco compra, y yo, como poco coco, poco coco compro."(Friend, buy me a coconut; friend, I won’t buy coconuts, because those who eat little coconut buy little coconut, and since I eat little coconut, I buy little coconut.)
• "Pedro Pérez Pereira, pobre pintor portugués, pinta preciosos paisajes por pocas pesetas para pasar por París."(Pedro Pérez Pereira, a poor Portuguese painter, paints beautiful landscapes for little money to travel through Paris.)

4. Funny tongue twisters

These will always get a laugh!

• "Pablito clavó un clavito en la calva de un calvito."(Pablito nailed a little nail into the bald head of a little bald man.)
• "Si el caracol tuviera cara, como tiene el caracol, cara de caracol fuera, pero no cara común."(If the snail had a face, like a snail has, it would be a snail face, but not a common face.)
• "Un hipopótamo hipo tuvo, un hipo hipopotámico fue el hipo que tuvo el hipopótamo."(A hippopotamus had hiccups, a hippopotamic hiccup was the hiccup the hippopotamus had.)

How to practice tongue twisters for better learning

1. Start slowly: Say each word carefully to ensure accurate pronunciation.
2. Use a mirror: Watch how your lips, tongue, and mouth move as you speak.
3. Repeat frequently: Practice the same tongue twister multiple times daily to improve fluency.
4. Record yourself: Listening to your voice helps you identify areas to improve.
5. Make it fun: Challenge friends to see who can say them the fastest without mistakes!

Why tongue twisters are great for language learning

Whether it’s an English or Spanish tongue twister, these linguistic games will help you improve quickly. They’re a fun way to practice and serve as an excellent warm-up for language skills.

So don’t hold back! Try a hard tongue twister, a funny one, or one so tricky it makes you laugh. Enjoy the process while boosting your language abilities. Are you ready for the challenge?