Articulation Exercises (AKA - Tongue Twisters)
Whether the weather be cold
Whether the weather be hot
We’ll be together whatever the weather
Whether we like it or not
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Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers;
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked;
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
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What a to-do to die today, at a minute or two to two;
A thing distinctly hard to say, but harder still to do.
For they'll beat a tattoo, at twenty to two
A rat-tat-tat- tat-tat-tat- tat-tat-tattoo
And a dragon will come when he hears the drum,
At a minute or two to two today, at a minute or two to two.
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Give me the gift of a grip-top sock,
A clip drape shipshape tip top sock.
Not your spinslick slapstick slipshod stock,
But a plastic, elastic grip-top sock.
None of your fantastic slack swap slop
From a slap dash flash cash haberdash shop.
Not a knick knack knitlock knockneed knickerbocker sock
With a mock-shot blob-mottled trick-ticker top clock.
Not a super, sheer seersucker ruck sack sock,
Not a spot-speckled frog-freckled cheap sheik's sock
Off a hodge-podge moss-blotched scotch-botched block.
Nothing slipshod drip drop flip flop or glip glop
Tip me to a tip top grip top sock.
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Try to say this clearly, without mistakes, in less than 20 seconds:
I bought a bit of baking powder and baked a batch of biscuits. I brought a big basket of biscuits back to the bakery and baked a basket of big biscuits. Then I took the big basket of biscuits and the basket of big biscuits and mixed the big biscuits with the basket of biscuits that was next to the big basket and put a bunch of biscuits from the basket into a biscuit mixer and brought the basket of biscuits and the box of mixed biscuits and the biscuit mixer to the bakery and opened a tin of sardines.
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Exercises for the lips
(p, b, m, w, wh)
A white witch watched a woebegone walrus winding white wool.
A Pale Pink Proud Peacock Pompously Preened its Pretty Plumage.
A Monk's Monkey Mounted Monastery Wall and Munched Melon and Macaroni.
Blake’s back brake block broke.
A big beetle bit a body in a big black bag.
Many merry moments make Madge mischievous.
Oporto, a port in Portugal, exports port.
Wise wives whistle while weaving worsted [wuss-tid] waistcoats.
Exercises for the tip of tongue and alveolar ridge [roof of mouth next to the teeth]
(s, n, sometimes r, d, t, l, z)
A sick sparrow sang six sad spring songs sitting sheltering under a squat shrub.
A nightingale knew no night was nicer than a nice night to sing his nocturnals.
A rhinoceros rushed into a restaurant and ordered ribs of beef, rabbit, rolls, raspberries, radishes, rhubarb pie, and rice.
A dozen dozen double damask dinner napkins.
A single solid silver sifter sifts sifted sugar.
A rural ruler should be truly rural and recognize rural rivalry.
An artist went to sea to see what he could see at sea to draw but all the artist saw at sea is what we always see at sea. [pronounce ‘the’ as ‘thee’ before a vowel, ‘thuh’ before a consonant, i.e. - ‘thee’ artist and ‘thuh’ sea.]
A roving raven on the roofing, raving.
Exercises for the lower lip and top teeth
(f, v)
A crow flew over the river with a lump of raw liver.
Five French friars fanning a fainted flea.
Flee from fog to fight ‘flu fast.
Five flashy flappers flitting forth fleetly found four flighty flappers flirting flippantly.
Fancy Nancy didn’t fancy doing fancy work but Fancy Nancy’s fancy Auntie did fancy Fancy Nancy doing fancy work.
Three fluffy feathers fell from feeble Phoebe’s fan.
Exercises for tongue blade [behind tip] and front of hard palate
(ch, sh, j, zh)
Chief Sheikh, sheep section.
Cheerful children chant charming tunes.
If a dog chews shoes what shoes should he choose to chew?
Joan joyously joined jaunty John in jingling jigs.
Shall Sarah Silling share her silver shilling?
Sixty-six shy schoolmasters sailing a ship serenely on a shining sea.
Exercises for the tip of the tongue and teeth
(‘th’ [voiced as in ‘then’ and unvoiced as in ‘thin’)
A thin little boy picked thick thistle sticks
I buy my clothes from Theophilus Thistlethwaithe the clothier at thirty three South Twelfth Street.
The Leith police dismisseth us.
Three thumping tigers tickling trout.
Through six thick swamps stumbled Sammy.
Three thousand thrushes thrilled them.
Whistle for the thistle sifter.
The sixth sick sheikh’s sixth sheep’s sick.
Exercises for the back of tongue and soft palate
(k, g, ng)
A king carried crates of cabbages across a crooked court.
A skunk sat on a stump. The skunk thunk the stump stunk and the stump thunk the skunk stunk.
A cup of creamy custard Cook cooked for Cuthbert.
An old owl occupies an old oak.
The school coal in the school coal shuttle was scattered by a cool scholar.
United States twin-screw steel cruisers.
Gertrude Grey gazed at the grey goose gaily.
