Tongue twisterFiendish
Japanese
東京特許許可局 (Tōkyō tokkyo kyokakyoku)
Meaning: A machine-gun of 'kyo' / 'kyoku' sounds.
Literally: Tokyo Patent Approval Bureau.
Origin: A staple of Japanese twister lists.
More Japanese tongue twisters
- 赤パジャマ黄パジャマ茶パジャマ (Aka pajama, ki pajama, cha pajama) A rapid-fire drill on colour words; the syllable shift from aka/ki/cha trips the tongue b…
- 坊主が屏風に上手に坊主の絵を描いた (Bōzu ga byōbu ni jōzu ni bōzu no e o kaita) A sustained 'b' and long-vowel drill — bōzu/byōbu/jōzu demand precise mouth control.
- なまむぎ なまごめ なまたまご (Nama mugi, nama gome, nama tamago) A nimble warm-up for the Japanese 'na / ma / ge' syllables.
Explore another collection: Idioms
Colorful expressions from dozens of languages, with their word-for-word translations.
- 四面楚歌 (Shimensoka) Being surrounded by enemies with no hope of escape or support.
- 鯖を読む (Saba o yomu) To fudge the numbers in your favor, especially your age.
- 油を売る (Abura ouru) To slack off or dawdle when you should be working.
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