Tongue twister 繞口令 (绕口令)
ràokǒulìng · from English
What is a tongue twister?
A tongue twister is a phrase designed to be hard to say quickly because of similar, repeated sounds; Chinese calls it 繞口令, sentences that wind the mouth.
Tongue twisters target sound contrasts that a language finds tricky, so they double as pronunciation drills for learners. Chinese twisters stress tones and retroflexes, Japanese ones the rhythm of similar morae, Korean ones similar consonants.
Examples
四是四，十是十，十四是十四，四十是四十 sì shì sì, shí shì shí...; 吃葡萄不吐葡萄皮 chī pútao bù tǔ pútao pí; 生麦生米生卵 namamugi namagome namatamago; 간장 공장 공장장은 강 공장장이고 ganjang gongjang gongjangjang-eun gang gongjangjang-igo
Kungfucius says: If you can say 四是四 ten times fast, you are ready for Mandarin. If not, you are ready for Mandarin class.