Many Tongue Twisters are Alliterative
You probably didn’t know when you were younger that you were constantly saying examples of alliteration. They were fun for you to say, which is why you didn’t know what was happening.
Alliteration is the continued repetition of the initial sounds of a letter. For example, the words “Tongue Twister” are alliterative.
Read through this list of alliterative tongue twisters and see if you can get through them without stumbling over your words.
Read Them As Fast As You Can
• Peter Piper
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?
• Thirty Year Old Thug
Something in a thirty-acre thermal thicket of thorns and thistles thumped and thundered threatening the three-D thoughts of Matthew the thug – although, theatrically, it was only the thirteen-thousand thistles and thorns through the underneath of his thigh that the thirty year old thug thought of that morning
• Fisherman Fisher
There was a fisherman named Fisher
Who fished for some fish in a fissure.
Till a fish with a grin,
Pulled the fisherman in.
Now they’re fishing the fissure for Fisher.
• Lucky Luke by Dr. Seuss
Luke Luck likes lakes.
Luke’s duck likes lakes.
Luke Luck licks lakes.
Luck’s duck licks lakes.
Duck takes licks in lakes Luke Luck likes.
Luke Luck takes licks in lakes duck likes.
• Cookie Cook
How many cookies could a good cook cook if a good cook could cook cookies? A good cook could cook as much cookies as a good cook who could cook cookies.
• Mary Mac
Mary Mac’s mother’s making Mary Mac marry me.
My mother’s making me marry Mary Mac.
Will I always be so Merry when Mary’s taking care of me?
Will I always be so merry when I marry Mary Mac?
• Boppy Bippy
Bobby Bippy bought a bat.
Bobby Bippy bought a ball.
With his bat Bob banged the ball
Banged it bump against the wall
But so boldly Bobby banged it
That he burst his rubber ball
“Boo!” cried Bobby
Bad luck ball
Bad luck Bobby, bad luck ball
Now to drown his many troubles
Bobby Bippy’s blowing bubbles.
• Cannonball Caramels
How much caramel can a canny cannonball cram in a camel if a canny cannonball can cram caramel in a camel?
• Caterpillars
If colored caterpillars could change their colors constantly could they keep their colored coat colored properly?
• Flying Flea
A fly and flea flew into a flue,
said the fly to the flea ‘what shall we do?’
‘let us fly’ said the flea
said the fly ‘shall we flee’
so they flew through a flaw in the flue.
• Dew Drops
How much dew does a dewdrop drop
If dewdrops do drop dew?
They do drop, they do
As do dewdrops drop
If dewdrops do drop dew.
• Fish
Fresh fried fish,
Fish fresh fried,
Fried fish fresh,
Fish fried fresh.
• Slitted Sheets
I’m a sheet slitter.
I slit sheets.
I’m the sleekest sheet slitter
that ever slit sheets.
See if you can find the alliteration in these final two – note that there may be more than one form of alliteration within a single example!
• Suzie and Tommy
Suzie, Suzie, working in a shoeshine shop.
All day long she sits and shines,
all day long she shines and sits,
and sits and shines, and shines and sits,
and sits and shines, and shines and sits.
Suzie, Suzie, working in a shoeshine shop.Tommy, Tommy, toiling in a tailor’s shop.
All day long he fits and tucks,
all day long he tucks and fits,
and fits and tucks, and tucks and fits,
and fits and tucks, and tucks and fits.
Tommy, Tommy, toiling in a tailor’s shop.
• 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 on a big black block!
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 on a big black block!
A dull, dark dock, a life-long lock,
A short, sharp shock, a big black block!
To sit in solemn silence in a pestilential prison,
And awaiting the sensation
From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block!