10 interesting and mind-blowing Korean tongue twisters

Tongue twisters are hard but they have several benefits for development. Try saying sick hicks nick six slick bricks with picks and sticks. Now just try saying it 5 times as fast as you can. Learning Korean tongue twisters will lead you one step closer to fluency.

Learning tongue twisters is an effective tool to learn any foreign language including Korean. This post will explain why tongue twisters are ideal for Korean language learners like you.

But before getting into Korean tongue twisters, let us understand how they are perfect for language practice. Korean tongue twisters are used by native speakers to make each other laugh. They engage in these playful wordy marathons and make fun of the one that fails to pronounce them.

Benefits of practicing Korean tongue twisters

Pronunciation practice

Tongue twisters have several major benefits for learners. Tongue twisters, by definition, are excellent pronunciation drills for Korean students. Language is a very specific set of sounds, which means it is a very specific way of moving your tongue, mouth, and palate. That means these tongue twisters can play a major role in developing as well as improving your Korean pronunciation.

You are actually training your tongue for specific sound sets of your target language by playing tongue twisters. You are conditioning your tongue to move in specific patterns. Because repetition is built into the exercise, your mouth will definitely get a workout.

To get the most out of your pronunciation practice, start slowly. Do not approach tongue twisters as if they were native speakers. Unlike them, your goal is not to complete the statements as quickly as possible. You have more rational objectives i.e. to develop command of Korean at a slow pace.  

Your primary goal, at least at first, should be to pronounce each word clearly and correctly. With practice, speed will come naturally. You must familiarize yourself with Korean sounds.

Listening practice

Tongue twisters will also help you sharpen your ears to the sound of Korean. While speaking, you are also listening to yourself, evaluating your delivery, and making necessary adjustments.

Tongue twisters are particularly useful for listening practice because they involve words that sound very similar to one another. In fact, they are a great way to teach yourself Korean because you will keep on repeating the word until you get it right.

Now that we have highlighted how Korean tongue twisters can help Korean language learners. Let’s explore how you can get the most out of these tongue twisters.

How to practice Korean tongue twisters?

Develop your vocabulary along the way

While engaging with the Korean tongue twisters, you will learn some new vocabulary words along the way. And there is a good chance you will never forget the ones you learn through tongue twisters.

The repetition of tongue twisters has the added benefit of strengthening vocabulary. Furthermore, you will remember them not only because of repetition but also because tongue twisters naturally provide an interesting context for the words. They are sometimes strange and sometimes funny.

Get a daily dose of grammar and sentence structure practice

Most Korean tongue twisters conform to the language’s grammar and sentence structure rules. Tongue twisters are an excellent way to put plug-and-play to use. You can change nouns for different nouns or verbs for different verbs while keeping the same sentence structure.

This is an excellent opportunity to practice proper grammar and sentence construction.

11 interesting and funny Korean Tongue Twisters

간장 공장 공장장은 장 공장장이고 된장 공장 공장장은 강 공장장이다.

Pronunciation: Gan-jang gong-jang gong-jang-jang-eun jang gong-jang-jang-i-go doen-jang gong-jang gong-jang-jang-eun gang gong-jang-jang-i-da.

Translation: The factory manager of the soy sauce factory is factory manager Jang, and the factory manager of the bean paste factory is factory manager Kang.

Vocabulary words:

• 장 (jang) — manager
• 간장 (gan–jang) — soy sauce
• 공장 (gong–jang) — factory
• 된장 (doen–jang) — soy bean paste

It is advised to make a list of these easy Korean words for yourself and in the end, you will have self-made notes to refer to.

경찰청 철창살은 외철창살이고 검찰청 철창살은 쌍철창살이다.

Pronunciation: Gyeong-chal-cheong cheol-chang-sa-reun noe-cheol-chang-sa-ri-go geom-chal-cheong cheol-chang-sa-reun ssang-cheol-chang-sa-ri-da.

Translation: The police headquarters’ iron bar windows are single-layer iron bars, and the prosecutor’s office’s iron bar windows are double-layer iron bars.

Vocabulary words:

• 경찰청 (gyeong–chal–cheong) — police headquarters
• 철창살 (cheol–chang–sal) — iron bar windows
• 검찰청 (geom–chal–cheong) — prosecutor’s office

네가 그린 기린 그림은 못 그린 기린 그림이고 내가 그린 기린 그림은 잘 그린 기린 그림이다.

Pronunciation: Ne-ga geu-rin gi-rin geu-ri-meun mot geu-rin gi-rin geu-ri-mi-go nae-ga geu-rin gi-rin geu-ri-meun jal geu-rin gi-rin geu-ri-mi-da.

Translation: The drawing of a giraffe that you drew is a poorly drawn drawing of a giraffe, and the drawing of a giraffe that I drew is a well-drawn drawing of a giraffe.

Vocabulary words:

• 그림 (geu-rim) — drawing, painting
• 기린 (gi-rin) — giraffe

고려고 교복은 고급 교복이고 고려고 교복은 고급 원단을 사용했다.

Pronunciation: Gohryeogoh gyo-pog-eun go-geub gyo-pog-i-go gohryeogoh gyo-pog-eun go-geub won-dan-eur sa-yong-haess-da.

Translation: Gohryeogoh uniforms are high-quality uniforms and Gohryeogoh uniforms are high-quality materials.

Vocabulary words:

• 교복 (gyo–pog) — uniform
• 고급 (go-geub) — high-quality

체다치즈를 최고 많이 먹은 최다은이 체다치즈 먹기 대회 최다 우승자이다.

Pronunciation: Chedachijeureul choego mani meogeun choedaeuni chedachijeu meokgi daehoe choeda useungjaida

Translation: Choi-Da-Eun who has eaten most of the cheddar cheese is the winner of the cheddar cheese eating competition.

Vocabulary words:

• 치즈 (chijeu) — cheese
• 최고 (choego) — best

서울특별시 특허허가과 허가과장 허 과장.

Pronunciation: Seo-ul-teuk-byeol-si teu-keo-heo-ga-gwa heo-ga-gwa-jang heo-gwa-jang.

Translation: Seoul Metropolitan City’s patent granting section permission section chief, Chief Heo.

Vocabulary words:

• 특허 (teuk–ho) — patent
• 허가 (heo–ga) — permission
• 과장 (gwa–jang) — department

육통 통장 적금 통장은 황색 적금 통장이고 팔통 통장 적금 통장은 녹색 적금 통장이다.

Pronunciation: Yug-tong tong-chang cheog-geum-tong chang-uen hwang-saeg cheog-geum-tong-chang-i-gop’ar-tong tong-chang cheog-geum-tong chang-uen nog-saeg cheog-geum-tong-chang-i-da.

Translation: Six dong bank book savings book is the yellow bank savings book and eight dong bank book savings book is the green bank savings book.

Vocabulary words:

• 육 (yuk) — six
• 팔 (pal) — eight
• 황 (hwang) — yellow
• 녹 (nog) — green

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목동 로얄 뉴로얄 레스토랑 뉴메뉴 미트소시지소스스파게티 크림소시지소스스테이크.

Pronunciation: Mokdong ro-yal nyu-ro-yar re-seu-t’o-rang nyu-me-nyu mi-teu-so-shi-chi-so-seu-seu-p’a-ge-t’i, k’eu-rim-so-shi-chi-so-seu-seu-t’e-i-keu.

Translation: Mokdong royal new royal restaurant’s new menu, meat sausage sauce spaghetti, cream sausage sauce steak.

Vocabulary words:

• 레스토랑 (re-seu-t’o-rang) — restaurant
• 메뉴 (me-nyu) — menu

박범복군은 밤벚꽃놀이를 가고 방범복양은 낮벚꽃놀이를 간다.

Pronunciation: Bakbeombokguneun bambeotkkonnorireul gago bangbeombogyangeun natbeotkkonnorireul ganda.

Translation: Park Beom-bok goes to the night cherry blossoms, and Bang Bum-bok goes to the day cherry blossoms.

Vocabulary words:

• 벚꽃 (beot-kkon) — cherry blossoms
• 밤 (bam) — night
• 낮 (nat) — day

안 촉촉한 초코칩 나라에 살던 안 촉촉한 초코칩이 촉촉한 초코칩 나라의 촉촉한 초코칩을 보고 촉촉한 초코칩이 되고 싶어서 촉촉한 초코칩 나라에 갔는데 촉촉한 초코칩 나라의 문지기가 “넌 촉촉한 초코칩이 아니고 안 촉촉한 초코칩이니까 안 촉촉한 초코칩 나라에서 살아”라고 해서 안 촉촉한 초코칩은 촉촉한 초코칩이 되는 것을 포기하고 안 촉촉한 초코칩 나라로 돌아갔다.

Pronunciation: An chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip na-ra-e sal-deon an chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-i chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip na-ra-ui chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-eul po-go chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-i doe-go ship-eo-seo chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip na-ra-e ka-neun-de chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip na-ra-ui mun-ji-gi-ga “neon chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-i a-ni-go an chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-i-ni-kka an chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip na-ra-e-seo sal-a”ra-go-hae-seo an chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-eun chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip-i doe-neun got-eul po-gi-ha-go an chok-chok-han cho-ko-chip na-ra-ro dol-a-gat-da.

Translation: A non-moist chocolate chip cookie that lived in non-moist chocolate chip cookie land saw a moist chocolate chip cookie from moist chocolate chip cookie land and wanted to become a moist chocolate chip cookie and so went to moist chocolate chip cookie land, but the gate-keeper of moist chocolate chip cookie land said, “You are not a moist chocolate chip cookie, but a non-moist chocolate chip cookie, so live in non-moist chocolate chip cookie land,” so the non-moist chocolate chip cookie gave up on becoming a moist chocolate chip cookie and went back to non-moist chocolate chip cookie land.

Vocabulary words:

• 초코칩 (cho-ko-chip) — chocolate chip (cookie)
• 촉촉한 (chok-chok-han) — moist

Conclusion

These Korean tongue twisters are not only interesting but also provide a great opportunity for Korean language learner to improve their Korean pronunciation and ability to structure Korean sentences.

Keep practicing these tongue twisters till you get them right and keep on spending them up.