Kenta Otani’s original tongue twisters: a collection that’ll have you tripping over words and bursting into laughter
Tongue twisters used for play and enunciation training.
If you’re going to take on the challenge, you want to enjoy it with uniquely funny phrases that make you laugh, right? In this article, we’ve carefully selected and introduced original tongue twisters created by comedian Kenta Otani.
Each one weaves together a whimsical world that makes you imagine the scene, and a tricky difficulty that skillfully exploits mouth movements.
They’re perfect for a quick bit of fun, so be sure to say them out loud and give them a try with your friends and family!
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Kenta Otani’s original tongue twisters: a collection that’ll make you stumble and laugh (1–10)
Sudden surge in kids eating nine cucumbersNEW!Kenta Otani
@otanikenta Tongue twister#cucumberAlmost all water
♬ Original song – Kenta Otani – Kenta Otani
You can’t really say there are many children who like cucumbers, but this tongue twister claims there’s a sudden surge of kids eating as many as nine! Just imagining children clutching cucumbers in both hands and devouring them is kind of funny, isn’t it? This tongue twister contains “kyu” four times, so try to be mindful of that when you say it.
Also, the word kuu (to eat), which starts with something other than “kyu,” is especially tricky and easy to stumble over.
Practice carefully so it doesn’t turn into “kyu.”
Oily Lovey-Dovey Mole AlbumNEW!Kenta Otani
@otanikenta Tongue twisterMoleHard to flip
♬ Original song – Kenta Otani – Kenta Otani
I’m curious about what’s inside the lovey-dovey mole’s album, but if it’s covered in oil, it seems hard to look at.
The fun of this tongue twister is that it lets you enjoy imagining things like that.
The first half, “abura-mamire raburabu” (oil-covered lovey-dovey), is still manageable to say, but the second half, “mogura arubamu” (mole album), feels like it’ll make you bite your tongue.
The transition between ra and a is especially tricky.
As for practice, it might help to imagine breaks like abura-mamire / raburabu mogura / arubamu.
If you want to raise the difficulty, try seeing how many times you can say it in a row.
Water-stealing horned owlKenta Otani
This is a tongue twister depicting a bizarre situation where drinking water that should have been left there gets stolen by a horned owl.
The image of the owl leaving while clutching the water—and the impossibility of the scenario—adds to the humor.
As a tongue twister, the key is the repeated “mi” sound, which tests how smoothly you can produce a sound that starts with closed lips.
It’s important to find a mouth shape that makes “mi” easy to say, while also trying not to laugh at the absurdity of the situation.
a very sick snow crabKenta Otani
It’s a tongue twister that describes a snow crab crouching and looking unwell, making you hesitate over whether to be concerned.
The prop card shows it squatting in a bathroom, but the fact that it’s hard to picture the situation from words alone is part of the fun.
The tricky part is the similar-sounding words—sugoi (amazing), guai (condition), warui (bad), and zuwai (snow crab)—which test your ability to articulate with big mouth movements.
Since mouth shape matters, it might even be good to exaggerate it on purpose.
Double-Walk Seared KalbiKenta Otani
It’s a tongue twister that describes a strange situation where two people are walking while searing short ribs.
Even if searing ribs makes sense, doing it while walking is what makes it funny.
The key is the placement of the “r” sounds in “double,” “walking,” “searing,” and “kalbi,” and those subtle differences create overall difficulty in pronunciation.
It’s important to proceed while checking how your mouth shape changes between the surrounding sounds and the “r,” and figuring out how to say it smoothly.