How it works
These R tongue twisters are 40 lines written for this site, in four groups: R at the start of a word, R blends such as tr and gr, R after a vowel, and R beside L.
Read the full guide
Start where the R is easiest
For many speakers R at the start of a word comes first, as in Rex the rescue rabbit. Blends come next, then R after a vowel, as in Carl's car parked far. Say a line slowly twice, then fast three times, and start again slowly at the first slip.
R and L side by side
The R and L group puts both sounds in one line, as in Lucy's rusty lock rattled loose in the rain. For L the tongue touches the ridge behind the top teeth; for R it only comes near, or bunches up. Learners whose first language has one sound for both often find this group the hardest.
- For a class warm-up, let each reader take one line from the list.
Questions and answers
What are good tongue twisters with R?
Lines packed with one kind of R. This page holds ten for each: R at the start, R blends, R after a vowel and R beside L. For blends, try "Greta grinned as the great green grasshopper grabbed a grape."
Can tongue twisters help a child say R?
They are practice for a sound a child can already say in single words; they do not teach the sound. If you are worried about how a child says R, ask a speech-language pathologist.
Does the page make up new tongue twisters?
No. It deals from a fixed list of 40 lines written for this page, and no line appears on another page of this site. The whole list is printed below the tool.