Tongue twisters are great fun and they also allow you to practice your language. Now, if you have to say the hardest tongue twisters ever, that would be an even greater challenge.
We’ve compiled a set of the hardest tongue twisters that you can imagine. Do you think you have the gift of the gab? Well, these challenging tongue twisters will put that to the test.
Ready to take them on? Here are some tongue twisters to get your tongue in knots.
The World’s Hardest Tongue Twisters Ever
Brisk Brave Brigadiers
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“Brisk brave brigadiers brandished broad bright blades, blunderbusses, and bludgeons—balancing them badly.”
This tongue twister plays on the “b” sound and that makes it especially difficult for those who are bad at the billowing b sound.
Pulled Cod
“Pad kid poured curd pulled cod.”
This difficult tongue twister was created by Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher and it is said to the be toughest tongue twister in the world. Why don’t you try saying it ten times fast and find out for yourself if you think it is really that hard.
Reared in a Rural Brewery
“Rory the warrior and Roger the worrier were reared wrongly in a rural brewery.”
Rory and Roger must have had quite some childhood.
Betty Botter
“Betty Botter had some butter,
“But,” she said, “this butter’s bitter.
If I bake this bitter butter, it would make my batter bitter.
But a bit of better butter – that would make my batter better.”
So she bought a bit of butter, better than her bitter butter,
and she baked it in her batter, and the batter was not bitter.
So ’twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter.”
Betty Butter is a classic tongue twister and it is also a challenging one. If you are interested in the origins and a deeper analysis of this hard tongue twister, be sure to read out story about Betty Butter and get a free printable here.
Fresh Fritters
“Fresh French fried fly fritters.”
Okay, hold on to my French fried fritters while I attempt this tongue twister…
Canning an Canned Can
“Can you can a canned can into an un-canned can
like a canner can can a canned can into an un-canned can?”
This one will challenge both your brain and your tongue. If you can say this can saying swiftly, we think that you are an expert with words.
Cross Cow
“If you must cross a coarse, cross cow across a crowded cow crossing, cross the cross, coarse cow across the crowded cow crossing carefully.”
You would probably do best to stay away from this coarse, cross cow.
Silly Sally’s Sheep
“Silly Sally swiftly shooed seven silly sheep.
The seven silly sheep Silly Sally shooed shilly-shallied south.
These sheep shouldn’t sleep in a shack;
sheep should sleep in a shed.”
Since we had a tongue twister about cows, we think that it is only fair that we have a tongue twister about sheep too. In fact, this is about seven silly sheep!
Groundhog Ground
“How much ground would a groundhog hog if a groundhog could hog ground?”
This tongue twister will ground you to a halt if you have to say it ten times quickly. Try it.
Lorry, Lorry
“Red lorry, yellow lorry.”
We know what you are thinking. This can’t be a difficult tongue twister. After all, it is such as short phrase with only just four words. Well, why don’t you try saying it out loud ten times and see if you don’t end up saying gibberish and nonsense. Take up the challenge and see if you can get one going on your lips.
Cinnamon Synonym
“A synonym for cinnamon is a cinnamon synonym.”
Did you know that cinnamon is a spice that comes from the bark of tree? I didn’t know that trees can bark. Woof woof!
Swimming Swans
“Six sleek swans swam swiftly southwards.”
Some how, this reminds us of the starting of a riddle. But we wonder what a riddle about swans would be about. Perhaps something about mistaken identity?
Feeding Bread
“Fred fed Ted bread and Ted fed Fred bread.”
If you spend too much time saying this bread tongue twister, we bet that you will eventually get hungry for a loaf to gobble down, even if your name isn’t Fred or Ted.
Luke’s Duck
“Luke’s duck likes lakes.
Luke Luck licks lakes.
Luke’s duck licks lakes.
Duck takes licks in lakes Luke Luck likes.”
We hope that you like this one as just as much as Luke Luck. If not, we think that you will enjoy these duck jokes.
Clam Cram
“How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?”
We guess that the answer to this tongue twister is that it is difficult for a clam to cram into a clean cream can?
Sheena and Sheila
“Sheena leads, Sheila needs.”
This tongue twister looks deceptively easy but, trust us, it isn’t.
Denise and the Fleas
“Denise sees the fleece, Denise sees the fleas. At least Denise could sneeze and feed and freeze the fleas.”
Poor Denise. We can’t imagine what it must have been like when she saw the fleas for the first time.
Wetter Weather
“Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better.”
This one is great whatever the weather.
Ingenious Iguanas
“Ingenious iguanas improvising an intricate impromptu on impossibly-impractical instruments.”
These sound like really talented iguanas.
Tutor who Tooted
“A tutor who tooted the flute tried to teach two young tooters to toot. Said the two to the tutor, ‘Is it harder to toot, or to tutor two tooters to toot?'”
Not to toot our own horn (or flute for that matter), but we can say this one quite quickly. How about you?
Thrilling Throne
“The 33 thieves thought that they thrilled the throne throughout Thursday.”
This is a thrilling one that you can try to get by Thursday.
Coffee in a Copper Cup
“Give papa a cup of proper coffee in a copper coffee cup.”
After tackling this tough tongue twister, we think that you may need a proper strong cup of coffee along with some coffee jokes.
Free Throws
“He threw three free throws.”
We wonder if it is referring to sporting throws like you would get in basketball, or if it is referring throws like blankets that you would find on a bed. In either case, we hope that the his free throws were done responsibly.
Slit the Sheet
“I slit the sheet, the sheet I slit, and on the slitted sheet I sit.”
Could this be the ultimate tongue twister for pirates? But if they do slit the sheets, how will they be able to sail away into the sunset on their pirate ships?
Unique New York
“I like New York, unique New York, I like unique New York.”
Here is a difficult tongue twister that is worthy of the Empire State. It is something completely unique and we can only imagine walking around Central Park trying to say this rhyme as quickly as possible.
Loyal Warrior
“A loyal warrior will rarely worry why we rule.”
W, w, w… woah.. This one is harder than it looks.
Imagine a Menagerie
“Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager managing an imaginary menagerie.”
If you love imaginary animals, we imagine that you would love to manage this menagerie.
Skunk on a Stump
“A skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk, but the stump thunk the skunk stunk.”
We wonder if the skunk belongs in the imaginary menagerie.
Toads in Tarrytown
“Two tiny timid toads trying to trot to Tarrytown.”
Tarrytown must be an attractive place for toads if even the timid ones try to make their way there.
Swiss Watches for the Wrist
“Which wrist watches are Swiss wrist watches?”
We love Switzerland. After all, its flag is a big plus. Now see if you can say the rhyme above about its watches.
Wristwatches Galore
“Irish wristwatch, Swiss wristwatch.”
Since we’re on the topic of wristwatches, here’s another one.
Easter Eddie’s Eggs
“Each Easter Eddie eats eighty Easter eggs.”
This is a seasonal tongue twister that you can pull out at Easter time.
Annoying an Oyster
“Any noise annoys an oyster but a noisy noise annoys an oyster more.”
We didn’t even know that an oyster had ears to listen to annoying noises.
Sick Hicks
“Six sick hicks nick six slick bricks with picks and sticks.”
This one is really quite difficult. Keep a focused mind as your make your way through all the “icks” in this tongue twister.
Sit in Solemn Silence
“To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock in a pestilential prison with a life-long lock, awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock from a cheap and chippy chopper with a big, black block.”
This one is a bit longer. It actually reminds us of a writing prompt and is one that makes us wonder what would happen if we were stuck in a prison cell for a long period of time. Would that get us writing tongue twisters or poetry?
The Shiek’s Sheep
“The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.”
The poor sheep. See if you can help to make the sheik’s sick sheep feel better by saying this tongue twister ten times as fast as you can. After all, laughter is the best medicine.
As a bit of curious trivia, in 1974, Guinness World Records featured this as the most difficult tongue twister in the English language, citing Ken Parkin, the author of the Anthology of British Tongue-Twister. Times were simpler and less twisting then!
One for Stout Saints
“Send toast to ten tense stout saints’ ten tall tents.”
As much as we love tongue twisters, sometimes we struggle to understand what they are all about. Not only is this one about stout saints a tongue twister but a brain twister too. However, with a bit of deciphering, we were able to figure it out. Phew.
Sizzling Scissors
“Scissors sizzle, thistles sizzle.”
This tongue twister is deceptively short. Give it a try and see if you can get it going at least ten times in a row without tripping up. Have fun!
I Wish
“I wish to wish the wish you wish to wish, but if you wish the wish the witch wishes, I won’t wish the wish you wish to wish.”
I wish this tongue twister was easier but it is not. It is really quite tricky and it can be a good, fun challenge for anyone to tackle. We think that you can pull this one out as part of a fun memory game challenge.
The Greedy Ape
“As he gobbled the cakes on his plate,
the greedy ape said as he ate:
The greener green grapes are,
the keener keen apes are to gobble green grape cakes.
They’re great!”
This tongue twister is also a limerick. What a fun way to learn and practice the English language.
Thurber on Thursday
“Thirty-three thirsty, thundering thoroughbreds thumped Mr. Thurber on Thursday.”
We are not quite sure who Mr Thurber is but we bet that he was able to thunder away quite easily on more days of the week than just Thursday. Try your own thundering words with this horse themed tongue twister.
By the way, we think that you will also enjoy this funny Thursday jokes that are perfect for lightening up the day that is almost-Friday.
Seashore Seashells
“She sells seashells by the seashore.”
This is another classic tongue twister and we could not not include in this list of hard tongue twisters. Think you have it down? How about a speed challenge to see how fast you can recite it without tripping up?
Self-absorbed Shellfish
“Selfish shellfish.”
This one looks super simple but it is really quite hard.
Tough, Thorough Thoughts
“English can be understood through tough thorough thought, though.”
Well, English can be tough at times. But was it really necessary to make it even tougher with this hard tongue twister?
Thrush’s Feathers
“Thirty-three thousand feathers on a thrush’s throat.”
This could be the feather that breaks the tongue twister saying thrush’s back.
Rough Rugged Rock
“Round the rough and rugged rock the ragged rascal rudely ran.”
This one could be rough. Think you can do it? Give it a try and say it aloud.
Susie Shoeshine
“Susie works in a shoeshine shop. Where she shines she sits, and where she sits she shines.”
Susie sure sounds super hardworking.
If you enjoyed this story, we predict that you will enjoy these difficult riddles too. Or you may enjoy these tongue twisters for kids.
