15 Spanish Tongue Twisters With Audio For Perfect Spanish Pronunciation

Spanish tongue twisters are called trabalenguas in Spanish. They are fun and also challenging ways to learn Spanish pronunciation and some related Spanish vocabulary.

Spring Spanish (of which I’m a co-founder of) made a video about Spanish tongue twisters full of laughter:

The truth is that these Spanish tongue twisters aren’t only for laughs, but they’re incredibly effective for fine-tuning your skills. This blog post will share 15 tongue twisters in Spanish with you, and we even categorized them into 3 sections:

1. Beginner Spanish tongue twisters
2. Intermediate Spanish tongue twisters
3. Advanced Spanish tongue twisters

1. Why are Spanish tongue twisters good?

“Trabalenguas,” are a fantastic way to spice up your language learning journey!

Apart from perfecting your pronunciation, they’re a sneaky way to pick up new vocabulary in context without even realizing it. (Something we like when we use Conversation Based Chunking method for learning.)

I remember my first encounter with a tongue twister in Mexico when I was an exchange student – I confidently tried to rattle off “Tres tristes tigres” in front of my host family, only to end up saying something that sounded more like “dress missed piglets.”

We all burst into laughter, and from that moment on, tongue twisters became my go-to party trick and learning tool rolled into one! So, let’s explore them together.

Beginner Spanish tongue twisters

These beginner Spanish tongue twisters are ideal for kids and for beginner-level Spanish students. Just start out with them, if you want to progress onto more complicated ones.

1. Pablito clavó un clavito (Little Pablo nailed a little nail)

Phonetic pronunciation: pah-BLEE-toh klah-VOH oon klah-VEE-toh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the ‘cl’ sound, making sure your tongue touches the roof of your mouth.
2. Practice saying “cla-cla-cla” slowly, then speed up gradually.
3. Break the phrase into smaller parts: “Pablito” / “clavó” / “un clavito”.

2. El perro de San Roque no tiene rabo (Saint Roch’s dog has no tail)

Phonetic pronunciation: el PEH-rro deh sahn ROH-keh noh TYEH-neh RAH-boh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Concentrate on rolling your ‘r’s in “perro” and “Roque.
2. Practice the ‘que’ sound, ensuring it sounds like “keh”.
3. Try saying the phrase slowly at first, then increase your speed.

3. Como poco coco como, poco coco compro (Since I eat little coconut, I buy little coconut)

Phonetic pronunciation: KOH-moh POH-koh KOH-koh KOH-moh, POH-koh KOH-koh KOHM-proh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the ‘co’ sound, making sure your lips are rounded.
2. Practice the contrast between ‘como’ (I eat) and ‘compro’ (I buy).
3. Start slowly and gradually increase your speed as you become more comfortable.

4. Pepe Pecas pica papas con un pico (Pepe Freckles picks potatoes with a pick)

Phonetic pronunciation: PEH-peh PEH-kahs PEE-kah PAH-pahs kohn oon PEE-koh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Concentrate on the ‘p’ sound, making sure your lips pop.
2. Practice saying “pi-pe-pa-po” to warm up.
3. Break the phrase into smaller parts: “Pepe Pecas” / “pica papas” / “con un pico”.

5. Mi mamá me mima mucho (My mom spoils me a lot)

Phonetic pronunciation: mee mah-MAH meh MEE-mah MOO-choh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the ‘m’ sound, ensuring your lips are pressed together.
2. Practice saying “ma-me-mi-mo-mu” to warm up.
3. Try to maintain a steady rhythm as you say the phrase.

Intermediate Spanish tongue twisters

These intermediate Spanish tongue twisters are a bit more complicated and longer. There are some hard-to-pronounce letters and letter combinations here, like ‘tr’.

6. Tres tristes tigres tragaban trigo en un trigal (Three sad tigers were swallowing wheat in a wheat field)

Phonetic pronunciation: trehs TREES-tehs TEE-grehs trah-GAH-bahn TREE-goh en oon tree-GAHL

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the ‘tr’ sound, making sure your tongue touches your teeth.
2. Practice saying “tre-tri-tra” slowly, then speed up.
3. Break the phrase into smaller parts: “Tres tristes tigres” / “tragaban trigo” / “en un trigal”.

7. El cielo está enladrillado, ¿quién lo desenladrillará? (The sky is tiled, who will un-tile it?)

Phonetic pronunciation: el SYEH-loh es-TAH en-lah-dree-YAH-doh, kyen loh deh-sen-lah-dree-yah-RAH

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Concentrate on the ‘ll’ sound, which should sound like “y” in “yes”.
2. Practice the contrast between “enladrillado” and “desenladrillará”.
3. Start slowly and gradually increase your speed.

8. Si tu gusto gustara del gusto que gusta mi gusto (If your taste liked the taste that my taste likes)

Phonetic pronunciation: see too GOOS-toh goos-TAH-rah del GOOS-toh keh GOOS-tah mee GOOS-toh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the ‘gu’ sound, ensuring it sounds like “g” in “go”.
2. Practice saying “gus-gus-gus” to warm up.
3. Try to maintain a steady rhythm as you say the phrase.

9. Pancha plancha con cuatro planchas (Pancha irons with four irons)

Phonetic pronunciation: PAHN-chah PLAHN-chah kohn KWAH-troh PLAHN-chahs

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Concentrate on the ‘ch’ sound, making sure it’s crisp and clear.
2. Practice the ‘pl’ sound, ensuring your tongue touches your teeth.
3. Break the phrase into smaller parts: “Pancha” / “plancha” / “con cuatro planchas”.

10. Erre con erre cigarro, erre con erre barril (R with R cigar, R with R barrel)

Phonetic pronunciation: EH-rreh kohn EH-rreh see-GAH-rroh, EH-rreh kohn EH-rreh bah-RREEL

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on rolling your ‘r’s, especially in “erre”.
2. Practice saying “erre” repeatedly to warm up.
3. Try to maintain a steady rhythm as you say the phrase.

Advanced Spanish tongue twisters

And finally, the hardest Spanish tongue twisters we have in this blog post. Lucky for you, we still offer audio pronunciations and phonetic examples, so you know how to pronounce them.

11. El otorrinolaringólogo de Parangaricutirimícuaro se quiere desotorrinolaringologizar (The otolaryngologist from Parangaricutirimícuaro wants to de-otolaryngologize himself)

Phonetic pronunciation: el oh-toh-rree-noh-lah-reen-GOH-loh-goh deh pah-rahn-gah-ree-koo-tee-ree-MEE-kwah-roh seh kyeh-reh des-oh-toh-rree-noh-lah-reen-goh-loh-hee-THAR

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Break the long words into syllables and practice each part separately.
2. Focus on the stress in “otorrinolaringólogo” (o-to-rri-no-la-rin-GÓ-lo-go).
3. Practice the contrast between “otorrinolaringólogo” and “desotorrinolaringologizar”.

12. Juan tuvo un tubo, y el tubo que tuvo se le rompió, y para recuperar el tubo que tuvo, tuvo que comprar un tubo igual al tubo que tuvo (Juan had a tube, and the tube he had broke, and to recover the tube he had, he had to buy a tube equal to the tube he had)

Phonetic pronunciation: hwahn TOO-voh oon TOO-boh, ee el TOO-boh keh TOO-voh seh leh rohm-PYOH, ee PAH-rah reh-koo-peh-RAHR el TOO-boh keh TOO-voh, TOO-voh keh kohm-PRAHR oon TOO-boh ee-GWAHL ahl TOO-boh keh TOO-voh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the ‘tu’ sound, ensuring your lips are rounded.
2. Practice the different forms of “tener” (tuvo, tuvo que).
3. Break the phrase into smaller sentences and practice each one separately.

13. Me han dicho que has dicho un dicho que he dicho yo. El que lo ha dicho, mintió. Y en caso de haberlo dicho, si yo lo hubiera dicho, estaría muy bien dicho por haberlo dicho yo (They’ve told me that you’ve said a saying that I’ve said. Whoever said it, lied. And in case of having said it, if I had said it, it would be very well said for having been said by me)

Phonetic pronunciation: meh ahn DEE-choh keh ahs DEE-choh oon DEE-choh keh eh DEE-choh yoh. el keh loh ah DEE-choh, meen-TYOH. ee en KAH-soh deh ah-BEHR-loh DEE-choh, see yoh loh oo-BYEH-rah DEE-choh, es-tah-REE-ah mwee byen DEE-choh pohr ah-BEHR-loh DEE-choh yoh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Concentrate on the ‘ch’ sound, making sure it’s crisp and clear.
2. Practice the different verb tenses used (han dicho, has dicho, he dicho, etc.).
3. Start slowly and gradually increase your speed as you become more comfortable.

14. Si cien sierras sierran cien cipreses, seiscientas sierras sierran seiscientos cipreses (If one hundred saws saw one hundred cypresses, six hundred saws saw six hundred cypresses)

Phonetic pronunciation: see syen SYEH-rrahs SYEH-rrahn syen see-PREH-ses, seys-SYEN-tahs SYEH-rrahs SYEH-rrahn seys-SYEN-tohs see-PREH-ses

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Focus on the contrast between ‘s’ and ‘c’ sounds.
2. Practice saying the numbers “cien” and “seiscientos” clearly.
3. Break the phrase into two parts and practice each separately before combining.

15. El hipopótamo Hipo está con hipo. ¿Quién le quita el hipo al hipopótamo Hipo? (The hippopotamus named Hipo has hiccups. Who will take away Hipo the hippopotamus’s hiccups?)

Phonetic pronunciation: el ee-poh-POH-tah-moh EE-poh es-TAH kohn EE-poh. kyen leh KEE-tah el EE-poh ahl ee-poh-POH-tah-moh EE-poh

Listen to pronunciation:

Tips for practice:

1. Remember that the ‘h’ is silent in Spanish.
2. Focus on the stress in “hipopótamo” (hi-po-PÓ-ta-mo).
3. Practice the question intonation in the second part of the tongue twister.

Learn Spanish tongue twisters to practice pronunciation with Conversation Based Chunking

When we listed the tips for practice for every Spanish tongue twisters, we already mentioned to break up the longer Spanish tongue twisters into smaller sections.

We like to call the most common Spanish word combinations as ‘chunks’. Chunks are natural occurrences in languages, and Spanish is no exception. These Spanish tongue twisters also have chunks in them: and with tongue twisters, you can learn them in context, so you understand what they mean, and you don’t have to learn the words one by one.

If you’re interested in this revolutionary method, sign up now, and we’ll send you a Spanish Chunking Starter Pack with resources to learn Spanish, explanation of this method and an essential Spanish chunking list to help you start on this journey.