A palindrome is a sentence that reads the same from top to bottom and bottom to top.
It feels kind of mysterious, but when you see one, you can’t help wanting to say it out loud!
Palindromes aren’t just fun to read—they’re also perfect for kids’ play, because creating your own builds vocabulary and thinking skills.
In this article, we’ll introduce recommended palindromes that we’d love kids to try, and that you can use as references when making your own.
The key to making palindromes is ensuring that the meaning still makes sense whether you read them forward or backward.
Try reading the palindromes we introduce out loud, and use them as inspiration for creating your own!
- [Rec] Interesting! A roundup of wordplay games
- Let's play with a big group! A collection of fun children's recreational activities
- Handmade games: DIY craft ideas you can make and play
- [Recreation] Challenge! A roundup of tongue twisters recommended for elementary school students
- Interesting four-character idioms for elementary schoolers! Words you'll want to use once you understand their meanings
- Funny senryu poems composed by junior high school students: introducing outstanding works that will make you burst out laughing
- Tongue twisters that will make you laugh out loud! Super funny
- Recommended riddles for elementary school students. A collection of kid-friendly riddles.
- Popular even among elementary school students! Stylish and easy-to-remember four-character idioms
- Challenging tongue twisters: Introducing high-difficulty phrases and sentences!
- [Diction Training] A Collection of Tongue Twisters to Improve Articulation
- Fun trick riddles you can enjoy in elementary school!
- Chinese tongue twisters: A collection of rao kou ling helpful for learning Chinese
Let's Play and Create! Fun Palindromes for Kids. Great as inspiration for making your own (1–10)
A persimmon tree?
2.bp.blogspot.com
A five-letter palindrome is very short, so it’s easy to make, right? First, choose a word you like.
“Kaki no ki ka?” uses the word “kaki” as the key to the palindrome.
If you reverse “kaki,” you get “kika.” Start by inserting one character between them to create a sentence that makes sense!
Grandpa Prodigy
4.bp.blogspot.com
A uniquely charming piece that makes you chuckle.
It’s amusing how it uses the seemingly opposite words “old man” and “child.” It might take a fair bit of technique to be able to use words with opposite meanings, but why not dare to give it a try?
Did you eat squid?
3.bp.blogspot.com
Let’s level up a bit and try tackling 7-letter palindromes, too.
Just like 5-letter ones such as “Kaki no ki ka?” (“Is it a persimmon tree?”), when they’re phrased as questions, they carry a somewhat humorous vibe, don’t they? There are quite a few two-letter words that even kids can easily use in palindromes, like “ika” and “kai,” so try hunting for them!
It works well.
3.bp.blogspot.com
It’s a palindrome with a strangely calming tone that makes you feel as if you’re being gently advised.
When you reverse the word “yoku” (meaning “often” or “well”), you get “kuyo,” which isn’t a proper word, but if you add one character, it becomes “kiku yo” (“I’ll listen”), which is a palindrome technique.
sing-song (utautau)
4.bp.blogspot.com
This is a short five-letter palindrome, so it’s great for kids.
“Uta utau” is fun because it’s made only with the sounds “u” and “ta.” It also seems like a good prompt to think further: Are there other palindromes that can be made using only two sounds?
The bamboo grove burned.
2.bp.blogspot.com
This is a famous palindrome you may have heard before.
“Takeyabu” (bamboo grove) isn’t a word that usually comes to mind, but it feels great when you can use it.
Using voiced sounds with the dakuten mark (゛) or semi-voiced sounds with the handakuten mark (゜) is advanced, so the trick is to place them in the middle of the palindrome.
distant sound
3.bp.blogspot.com
A piece that evokes a slightly poetic scene in the mind.
The adjective “distant” and the noun “sound” come together to create a somewhat beautiful atmosphere, don’t they? To level up a bit, it might be interesting to try creating palindromes that combine an adjective and a noun like this.