妈妈骑马，马慢，妈妈骂马 (Māma qí mǎ, mǎ màn, māma mà mǎ) – Mom rides a horse, the horse is slow, Mom scolds the horse – is a classic Chinese tonal tongue twister. Every syllable is ma with a different tone.
Tongue Twisters
吃葡萄不吐葡萄皮 (Chī pútao bù tǔ pútao pí) – eat grapes, don’t spit out grape skin – is a beloved Chinese tongue twister where the same word putao appears four times with the similar-sounding tu and chu.
四是四，十是十 (Sì shì sì, shí shì shí) – four is four, ten is ten – is the most famous Chinese Mandarin tongue twister. The s and sh sounds combined with the four tones make it a perfect phonetic trap.
Discover the best Chinese Mandarin tongue twisters (绕口令 rao kou ling). From si shi si to hei hua fei fa hei, Mandarin tones and retroflex sounds make Chinese tongue twisters some of the most challenging in the world.
De bonte hond beet de blonde bond is a compact Dutch tongue twister about a spotted dog. The b and on sounds repeat and swap across every word.
Roodborstje zat op het randje van het rietje en at rijstepap met een rietje is a Dutch tongue twister about a robin eating rice porridge through a straw. The r and riet sounds repeat throughout.
De schildpad schilt de schil van de schildklier is a Dutch tongue twister where the sch sound repeats across turtle, peels, peel, and thyroid gland.
Als vliegen achter vliegen vliegen, vliegen vliegen vliegend achter vliegen aan is a famous Dutch tongue twister. The word vliegen means both flies and to fly, and appears seven times.
De kat krabt de krullen van de trap is the most famous Dutch tongue twister. The cat scratches the curls off the stairs – the kr and tr sounds collide throughout.
Discover the best Dutch tongue twisters (tongbrekers). From de kat krabt to als vliegen vliegen, Dutch guttural r, sch, and kr clusters make these a fascinating challenge.