Dutch Tongue Twisters

A curated set of 5 tongue twisters in Dutch — literal translations, real meanings, and where each one comes from.

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• De kat krabt de krullen van de trap. — A 'kr' cluster drill — Dutch consonant pileups that beginners approach with dread. Literally: The cat scratches the curls off the stairs..
• Als vliegen achter vliegen vliegen, vliegen vliegen vliegen achterna. — The same noun/verb homograph trap as the German version — vliegen does triple duty. Literally: When flies fly behind flies, flies fly after flies..
• De koetsier poetst de postkoets met postkoetspoets. — Turns on the gap between the Dutch 'oe' and 'o', with a run of 'ts' and 'p' stops layered on top. Literally: The coachman polishes the mail coach with mail-coach polish..
• Wij smachten naar achtentachtig prachtige nachten. — Five words carrying the Dutch guttural 'cht', the sound foreigners find hardest to produce at all. Literally: We long for eighty-eight magnificent nights..
• Liesje leerde Lotje lopen langs de lange Lindelaan. — Eight consecutive l-words, with the vowel behind the l changing every time. Literally: Liesje taught Lotje to walk along the long Linden Lane..

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