French Tongue Twisters

A curated set of 7 tongue twisters in French — literal translations, real meanings, and where each one comes from.

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• Un chasseur sachant chasser doit savoir chasser sans son chien. — The classic French 'ch' / 's' tangler. Literally: A hunter who knows how to hunt must know how to hunt without his dog..
• Les chaussettes de l'archiduchesse sont-elles sèches, archi-sèches? — A merciless duel between 'ch' and 's'. Literally: The archduchess's socks — are they dry, super-dry?.
• Si six scies scient six cyprès, six cents scies scient six cents cyprès. — An 's' / 'si' minefield. Literally: If six saws saw six cypresses, six hundred saws saw six hundred cypresses..
• Dans ta tente ta tante t'attend. — A gentle 'ta / ten / tan / t'' warm-up that sounds faster than it reads. Literally: In your tent your aunt is waiting for you..
• Seize chaises sèches sur seize arches sèches. — A relentless collision of 'sei', 'sèch', and 's' — the tongue can't find traction. Literally: Sixteen dry chairs on sixteen dry arches..
• Un beau ver vert dans un verre vert verra un ver vert. — Ver (worm), vert (green), and verre (glass) are near-homophones — distinguishing them at speed is merciless. Literally: A beautiful green worm in a green glass will see a green worm..
• Didon dîna, dit-on, du dos d'un dodu dindon dont le dodu dos dodine. — A 'd' / 'din' / 'dod' avalanche that seems designed to jam the tongue in third gear. Literally: Dido dined, they say, on the back of a plump turkey whose plump back wobbled..

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