Chinese tongue twisters are called raokouling (绕口令 – literally “winding mouth orders”). They have been part of Chinese culture for over a thousand years, appearing in ancient texts, folk songs, and contemporary comedy. Chinese tongue twisters are uniquely challenging because Mandarin is a tonal language with four tones (plus a neutral tone), and many Chinese syllables sound identical except for their tone. Tongue twisters exploit this tonal similarity to create rapid, disorienting sequences of near-identical sounds at different pitches.
1. Si Shi Si, Shi Shi Shi
四是四，十是十，十四是十四，四十是四十。
Sì shì sì, shí shì shí, shísì shì shísì, sìshí shì sìshí.
Translation: “Four is four, ten is ten, fourteen is fourteen, forty is forty.”
The most famous Mandarin Chinese tongue twister for non-native speakers. “Si” (四, four, 4th tone) and “shi” (十, ten, 2nd tone) sound almost identical to non-Chinese ears but carry different tones. At speed, distinguishing S from SH and maintaining the correct tone on each number becomes nearly impossible. The counting progression (4, 10, 14, 40) forces alternation between SI and SHI in new combinations each time.
2. Chi Putao Bu Tu Putao Pi
吃葡萄不吐葡萄皮，不吃葡萄倒吐葡萄皮。
Chī pútáo bù tǔ pútáo pí, bù chī pútáo dào tǔ pútáo pí.
Translation: “When eating grapes, don’t spit out the grape skin; when not eating grapes, you do spit out the grape skin.”
One of the most widely known Chinese tongue twisters. “Putao” (葡萄, grapes) repeats twice in each clause. “Tu” (吐, to spit) and “bu” (不, not) alternate: chi (eat) – bu tu (don’t spit) – putao pi (grape skin) – bu chi (don’t eat) – dao tu (instead spit). The second clause is the logical opposite of the first, but uses almost the same sounds – perfect tongue twister structure.
3. Mama Qi Ma, Ma Man, Mama Ma Ma
妈妈骑马，马慢，妈妈骂马。
Māma qí mǎ, mǎ màn, māma mà mǎ.
Translation: “Mother rides a horse; the horse is slow; mother scolds the horse.”
The syllable “ma” with four different tones appears in a single sentence:
– 妈 (mā, 1st tone, flat) = mother
– 骑 (qí, 2nd tone, rising)
– 马 (mǎ, 3rd tone, dipping) = horse
– 慢 (màn, 4th tone, falling) = slow
– 骂 (mà, 4th tone, falling) = scold
The phrase “māma” (mother) at the start and end differs from the isolated “mǎ” (horse) only in tone and repetition. Full guide.
4. Hei Hua Fei Fa Hei
黑化肥发黑会挥发，灰化肥挥发会发黑。
Hēi huà féi fā hēi huī fā, huī huà féi huī fā huì fā hēi.
Translation: “Black fertilizer that has blackened can volatilize; grey fertilizer that volatilizes will turn black.”
Uses the sounds HEI (black), HUA (chemical/transform), FEI (fertilizer), FA (volatilize), HUI (grey/volatilize) in a rapidly alternating sequence. All five sounds are very similar to non-Chinese ears – H-initial syllables with different vowels and tones. Native Chinese speakers find this genuinely hard at speed because the F/H distinction and the vowel differences are subtle under the stress of rapid speech. Full guide.
5. Biantan Chang Bian Dan, Dan Chang Biantan
扁担长，板凳宽，扁担没有板凳宽，板凳没有扁担长。
Biǎndān cháng, bǎndèng kuān, biǎndān méiyǒu bǎndèng kuān, bǎndèng méiyǒu biǎndān cháng.
Translation: “The shoulder pole is long, the bench is wide; the shoulder pole is not as wide as the bench; the bench is not as long as the shoulder pole.”
“Biǎndān” (扁担, shoulder pole) and “bǎndèng” (板凳, bench) share the BIAN/BAN initial sounds and the DAN/DENG endings. Both words start with B-A/I and end in a nasal + vowel. The sentence structure requires saying each object’s property (“long/wide”) and then comparing them cross-wise. Full guide.
Mandarin’s Four Tones
Mandarin Chinese has four distinct tones plus a neutral tone:
– 1st tone (ā): flat, high pitch – like a sustained musical note
– 2nd tone (á): rising, like the end of an English question “what?”
– 3rd tone (ǎ): dipping-then-rising, like a thoughtful “hmm”
– 4th tone (à): sharp falling, like a firm “no”
A single syllable in each of the four tones can mean four completely different things. “Ma” in the four tones means: mother (1st), hemp/numb (2nd), horse (3rd), scold (4th). Tongue twisters exploit this by stacking syllables that differ only in tone, forcing speakers to maintain tonal accuracy at speed – the one thing that degrades fastest when speaking Chinese quickly.
Tips for Chinese Tongue Twisters
- Learn tones on individual syllables first before attempting tongue twisters. Using the wrong tone changes the word’s meaning completely.
- The X/SH distinction: Chinese X (as in “xi”) is a palatal fricative (tongue near hard palate); SH is retroflex (tongue tip curled back). Both exist in “Si shi si” type twisters.
- Chinese R is a retroflex approximant, similar to the American English R but with the tongue curled back further.
- Tone sandhi: 3rd tone before another 3rd tone becomes 2nd tone. “Nǐ hǎo” (你好) is said “Ní hǎo.” Know the sandhi rules before tackling tonal tongue twisters.
- Practice in syllable-by-syllable slow mode, holding each tone fully, before increasing speed.
More tonal language tongue twisters: Vietnamese | Korean | Japanese | All Tongue Twisters