Tongue twisterTricky
Russian
RussianКарл у Клары украл кораллы, Клара у Карла украла кларнет. (Karl u Klary ukral korally, Klara u Karla ukrala klarnet.)
Meaning: A 'kl/kr/r' drama — crime, countercrimes, and consonant clusters all at once.
Literally: Karl stole corals from Klara; Klara stole Karl's clarinet.
Origin: One of the most beloved Russian twisters; children debate who was wrong — Karl or Klara.
More Russian tongue twisters
- Корабли лавировали, лавировали, да не вылавировали. (Korabli lavirovali, lavirovali, da ne vylavirovali.) One verb, three inflections, pure 'lav/vir' torture — the word grows with every repetitio…
- Ехал Грека через реку, видит Грека — в реке рак. (Yekhal Greka cherez reku, vidit Greka — v reke rak.) A rolling 'r/k' drill where Greka, reku and rak keep trading the same two consonants.
- От топота копыт пыль по полю летит. (Ot topota kopyt pyl po polyu letit.) A 'p/t' hammering that imitates the hoofbeats it describes.
- Четыре чёрненьких чумазеньких чертёнка чертили чёрными чернилами чертёж. (Chetyre chyornenkikh chumazenkikh chertyonka chertili chyornymi chernilami chertyozh.) Seven consecutive words built on 'ch' — Russian's ч in every stressed position with barel…
- На дворе трава, на траве дрова. (Na dvore trava, na trave drova.) A short but nasty 'tr/dr' blend — the consonant clusters that trip up every learner of Ru…
- Шла Саша по шоссе и сосала сушку. (Shla Sasha po shosse i sosala sushku.) A merciless 'sh/s/ss' collision — Sasha walking, sucking, and all those sibilants.
Explore another collection: False Friends
Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
- Intelligentny (Интеллигентный) (Intelligentnyy) Actually means 'cultured' and 'well-mannered'. For clever, say умный (umny).
- Simpatichny (Симпатичный) (Simpatichnyy) Actually means 'good-looking' or 'likeable'. For sympathetic, say сочувствующий (sochuvst…
- Aktualny (Актуальный) (Aktualnyy) Actually means 'topical' or 'currently relevant'. For actual (real), say настоящий (nasto…
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