Among tongue twisters that test articulation and smooth delivery, we’ll highlight and introduce longer ones.
The connections between words and the rhythm of the sentences add a level of difficulty unique to longer passages.
By repeatedly challenging yourself with hard-to-read text, your articulation will gradually improve, leading to clearer speech and smoother everyday conversation.
The key is to aim for clear, easy-to-understand pronunciation—like a news announcer reading the news.
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A collection of long tongue twisters. Also recommended for practicing announcements and narration. (1–10)
I leaned bamboo against this bamboo fence because I wanted to lean bamboo against it, so I leaned bamboo against it.
The classic tongue twisters that combine words like “takegaki” (bamboo fence) and “take tatekaketa” (started to set up bamboo) are tricky, and deciding what to connect them with is another difficult point.
Like with the word “take” (bamboo), sequences of T-sounds and K-sounds are challenging, and how you place your tongue against your teeth leads to smoother pronunciation.
For K-sounds, lift the back of your tongue to the roof of your mouth; for T-sounds, raise the tip of your tongue.
Quickly determine which consonant row each character belongs to and adjust your tongue movements accordingly.
It’s recommended to check your tongue movements while pronouncing slowly at first, then gradually increase your speed.
At the candy shop in front of the Heavenly Shrine, a masseur and a nun take shelter from the rain. Until the rain stops, the masseur says he’ll knead more. The masseur kneads the nun, and the nun kneads the masseur. Is the masseur good, or is the nun good? Both the masseur and the nun are all good. Let the masseur give a good rub, let the nun give a good rub, while they wait out the rain.
Why not try tackling an ultra-long tongue twister? It’s a great practice piece for aspiring announcers, narrators, and voice actors! Start by breaking it into phrases and absorbing the meaning of each part.
That way, the scenes will come to life in your mind and your readability will improve.
Also, as you get toward the end of this tongue twister, a natural rhythm emerges, so it can help to ride that rhythm as you read.
By the way, “anma” refers to a massage therapist, and “ama” refers to a woman who has taken Buddhist vows.
Inspection of the newly established examination room; a person on the brink of death; review of producers’ application forms; administrative oversight inspector; a kind teacher; desperate disappearance while at the company
This is an advanced tongue twister that really tests your articulation.
It’s packed with kanji, and it looks tough just by glancing at it! Start by seeing if you can read it slowly without stumbling, then gradually try to speed up.
If there are parts you keep getting stuck on, try breaking it down into words or phrases and tackle those.
If you can say this smoothly, becoming an announcer or narrator might not be just a dream.
The reverse of a reversible reaction is an irreversible reaction; the reverse of an irreversible reaction is a reversible reaction. Both reversible and irreversible reactions are chemical reactions.
It’s a tongue twister that starts with a reversible reaction and gradually lengthens by adding words like “irreversible” or “reverse.” The tricky part is the combination of the K and G sounds in words like “kagyaku” (reverse) and “fukagyaku” (irreversible), so pay close attention to how you move your tongue for K sounds.
You lift the back of your tongue upward and then release air like a plosive, so the tongue muscles are crucial for smooth pronunciation.
First, pronounce it slowly and clearly, and check the shape of your tongue and mouth for each syllable before trying it at speed.
In the darkness, the Noh chant “Kumano,” a snowy night scene, the night watch on the eighth night, staggering all through the night.
Would you like to try a challenging tongue twister that makes you feel as if you’re reading a literary master’s short story? If you picture the scene described in this tongue twister, it’s beautiful, and you can expand the imagery in your own way as you read.
To start, it’s best to break it into single phrases and say them out loud.
There isn’t much sense of rhythm, so the key is how smoothly you can read from phrase to phrase without leaving pauses.
Take a breath at “in the darkness,” another at “Noh chant Kumano, snowy nightscape,” and then read straight through to the end in one go—that might be the trick.
When a pig hit another pig, it got hit back. Because the pig that hit hit the pig that had been hit, both the pig that hit and the pig that got hit collapsed.
A tongue twister that sounds like it depicts pigs fighting gets longer and harder to follow, so it’s important to clearly imagine the flow.
The pronunciation of “buta ga” is a key point.
Knowing the mouth shapes and how to release the breath for each sound will lead to smooth overall pronunciation.
For “bu,” make a small mouth and release a plosive; for “ta,” lift the tip of the tongue; for “ga,” raise the back of the tongue.
Check each of these movements and proceed with a focus on articulating every sound accurately.
Other sounds will come in at the connections, so be careful not to lose the rhythm there, and make sure to open your mouth broadly as you speak.
Art room, technology room, operating room; art preparation room, technology preparation room, operating preparation room; art assistant, technology assistant, surgical assistant
Let’s try a very challenging tongue twister that’s also great for practicing announcements and narration! At first glance it’s all in kanji, so many people might think it’s impossible right away.
However, if you look closely, it’s actually a repetition of words with slight variations, which might make it easier to memorize.
If you break it into words and say them out loud repeatedly, it will stick in your head.
Also, there’s a steady rhythm to it, so reading along with that rhythm should make articulation easier!