Today's Egg-cellent Tongue Twister

Hello there fellow Eggheads!
(I'm sure you know that the idiom "Egghead" means a very smart person)

How do you like your eggs??
(Fried, boiled, scrambled, in an omelette, poached, steamed or served on a stick?)

I myself like to keep my egg firmly planted on my shoulders,

(Who wouldn't in my position?)

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But I know many many people who like them

HARD-BOILED

  What is a hard-boiled egg, you ask?
          Well, the key is that the shell stays HARD
and you cook the egg in BOILING water.



First you must HEAT it

Then you must HIT it

Then you can EAT it!

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It's as easy as 1-2-3...

Heat the Hot Hard-Boiled Eggs
  

  Hit the Hot Hard-Boiled Eggs

    Eat the Hot Hard-Boiled Eggs

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Try saying this three times fast!
With a rhythm is best!
"bum-ba-dum, bum-bum-bum"
Focus on pronouncing HEAT vs. HIT vs. EAT

Try, try, try....and if you mess up, no big deal!

You've got to break a few eggs if you want to make an omelette.

;)

Pronunciation Poem of the Day

Hi there you crazy kids,

I had a dream last night, and in it, I dreamed that I thought of this little poem...

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Eight psycho cyclists, 

sitting in a silo, 

looking for some bicyclists 

to share their wanton sorrow.

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...It's kinda nice, don't you think? When I woke up, I had to write it down immediately!

Here are the words with Strong "S" SoundS:

Psycho: silent P, CH sounds like /K/, /sie/-/koe/

Cyclists: 3 syllables, /sie/-/kul/-/ists/

Sitting: pretty basic, /si/-/ting/

Silo: with a strong I sound, /sie/-/low/

Some: again, basic, /sum/

Bicyclists: again, only 3 syllables, this time /bie/-/si/-/clists/

Sorrow: even though spelled "or", it's pronounced /sar/-/oe/

Here are some definitions ...

Cyclists

Psycho Cyclists

Psycho: Psych- comes from Greek, meaning soul/spirit/mind, but today, psycho means crazy, or very enthusiastic, to say it nicely.

Cyclists: Coming from cycle, which is like circle. A bicycle is made of two (bi=2) wheels (circles/cycles) and the people who are serious about riding them are called cyclists. If they are less serious, maybe we would call them bicyclists.

       

Silo

Sorrow

Silo: A silo is a large building on a farm. It is used to keep extra food inside, usually grains.

Wanton Sorrow: Sorrow is a feeling of great sadness and regret and Wanton means "for no reason" and usually describes something destructive. 

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There are alot of "S" sounds in this poem, and they come from both S and C, even with a silent P thrown in and plenty of Ys...

WHHHYYYY!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Yes, Why? That is a question we ask when we feel SORROW, when we are stuck in a CYCLE, and  especially when it feels like the world has gone PSYCHO!

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Sooo....

If you can imagine, 8 crazy bicycle riders, sitting together in a big silo, with everyone searching for somebody else like them, bicyclists, who they can be sad with. 

It was a dream, so excuse me if it's a bit strange...

Of course, the true meaning of the poem is up to you,

But everybody needs somebody, somebody like them who understands and shares their feelings...

Even psycho cyclists!!!

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Take care, and keep pedaling through your English studies!!!

See you next time and sweet dreams...)

Tongue Twister of the Day

Hey y'all,

My name is Pearl
        I'm a country Girl
    I live in an area that's Rural
                          My hair is very Curly
                                                     and Burly
            Sometimes, I like to give my hair a Twirl

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Pearl the rural girl

Pearl the Rural Girl 

Likes to Twirl her Burly Curls

likes to twirl her burly curls

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Tongue Twister of the (New Year's) Day

Hello 'zere,
I am Hans Grindelwald, expert clock maker, watch repairman, and punctuality enthusiast.
Pleased to meet you.

I come from Switzerland, and if there is one thing that we are known for it is...

Chocolate? Well, yes, I suppose we are very famous for our chocolate, that is true. But what I was thinking was something else. 

We have a very proud tradition of...

Neutrality in European armed conflicts? 

Yes, well that is also part of our long history, and yes, our Swiss Army Knives are also quite popular around the world. I agree with that fully. 

But keep thinking...I'll give you a little TIME.....*tick *tick *tick, hehe..

What? No! It's not our banking industry, it's our watches, our beautiful Swiss wrist watches! 

You see? Like this one...

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This wrist watch is a

This wrist watch is a Swiss wrist watch

Swiss wrist watch

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The tricky part is saying the end of the words clearly...

Swiss wrist watch

It's helpful to say when you're preparing to give a speech, 

so try it next time!

Tongue Twisting Tale of the Day

Here's one that is a little more advanced...

Big words,
Big twists
and
BIG TROUBLE!!!

First, the words:

Tumultuous: This word is related to tumult, which is defined as confusion or disorder. Some synonyms are: chaotic, explosive, volatile, or (my favorite) tempestuous! It is pronounced in 4 syllables: tuh-mul-chew-us, with the accent on the second syllable of mul. Or, for those who can read this (I can't): t(y)o͞oˈməlCHo͞oəs

Torturous: This word is related to torture, which is the inflicting of terrible pain, but the adjective torturous usually means something twisting and turning, something long and complicated, something that makes you anxious and exhausted.
The pronunciation is in 3 syllables: tor-chur-us, with the accent on tor. 
If you like this kind of thing, it's also: ˈtôrCH(o͞o)əs

Next, the twists:

One day, my cousin told me a story about going shopping at IKEA here in California. I like IKEA, they have great, affordable furniture and you can buy Swedish meatballs at the end! BUT, according to my cousin, this one day was TORTUROUS and TUMULTUOUS...

The parking lot was full, and he had to drive around and around, following one-way signs, stop signs, avoiding people driving with their cars full of furniture and people walking with their arms full of meatballs...very annoying.

THEN, he finally got in the store, but was confused by all the towering items and comfortable living rooms. He just wanted a shelf, but found himself walking around and around, following one-way signs and stop signs, avoiding children running around and adults trying to run and sit in the comfy chairs. 'Where are the shelves?!' he thought to himself.

He finally found the shelves (after walking around and around for half an hour) and he found the perfect shelf! 
"BUT," they said, "we don't have any more of those shelves, we're sorry. This one over here is also an excellent shelf.."
"That shelf won't fit in my room." my cousin said, as politely as he could. 
"Oh, well...how about this one?" they said.
"That one's even bigger! How is that going to fit?" my cousin asked, a little frustrated now.
"Hmmm...well, have you thought about getting a bigger room?" 
"GrAhhh!..Thank you...Nevermind..." my cousin said, walking away with his shoulders low.

Now my cousin was getting hungry. He had skipped breakfast that morning, and now, after all the driving and walking around, he could hear his stomach grumbling. He was disappointed that they didn't have the shelf he needed, but at least he could get some food before leaving this giant box of a store. 

"May I have some meatballs, please?" my cousin asked the worker behind the food counter.
"Oh, I'm sorry, we're sold out of meatballs," the worker said.
"Out of meatballs?! Well...what else do you have to eat?"
"Oh, we have some lovely SYLT HJORTRON if you'd like to try some."
"Excuse me?"
"Some SYLT HJORTRON. It's really quite delicious." 
At that point, my cousin would have eaten anything he was so hungry.
"Sure...I can't pronounce it, but maybe I can eat it," my cousin said, shrugging his shoulders.
"Ok, here you are!" and the worker handed my cousin a jar.

My cousin stood there and blinked....twice.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" he asked.

"Whatever you want!" the worker said with a smile.

"No, I mean, HOW am I supposed to eat this?" 'I'm soooo hungry!' he thought. "Do you have a spoon or something back there?"

"Oh, if you'd like spoons, you can go back in the entrance, walk around and go up to the third level, and you'll find them right next to the bookshelves. You know, we have GREAT shelves here!" The worker's smile was now huge as he waited for my cousin's answer.

But there was no answer. My cousin was so tired and deliriously hungry by now that he couldn't even say goodbye. He just walked out, back through the parking lot, holding his jar of....his JAR, in his hand.

But of course, the parking lot was absolutely full of cars, trucks, motorcycles and vans, and it was getting dark. My cousin looked and looked and looked for his car, and only after an hour of back and forth searching did he FINALLY find it. 

But of course, when he climbed in his car and put the key in the ignition, he found that the motor wouldn't start!

No, I'm kidding...:) The car started, and he finally got home and made himself a giant sandwich!

But what a tumultuous trip, right?? It was torturous!!!

So, if my cousin could make it through such a tumultuous journey, such a torturous trip, surely YOU can make it through saying this tongue twister 3, 4, 5, or 50 times, right?!! ;)

So here is the Trouble: 

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T'was a tumultuous, torturous journey

T'was a tumultuous, torturous journey. T'was a torturous, tumultuous trip.

t'was a torturous, tumultuous trip

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Gooooooooood luck!

(By the way, "T'was = It was")

But, like all journeys and trips, there is an end.
May your journey towards mastery of English NOT be torturous or tumultuous!
May it be illuminating, incredible and interesting!!!
See you next time)

Tongue Twister of the Day

Here's a simple one for you...

//The Cat Sat on the Cop and Watched the Clock\\

English pronunciation can be difficult because sometimes the same letter can have a different sound!

For example:

The letter A in "Cat" 

has the same sound as these words:

At, Sat, Sad, Back, That and Cap

but

The letter A in "Watched"

has a different sound, like these words:

Wash, Walk, Talk, and yes, even

COP and CLOCK!

So,

When you say "Cat" and "At,"

Smile :) and feel it in your nose...

C-A-A-A-A-T

and

When you say "Cop," "Watched" and "Clock,"

Open your mouth, like you're at the Doctor's...

W-A-A-A-A-TCH-T

Have fun and good luck!!!!!

Tongue Twister of the Day

H    e    l     l     o  .  .  .  .  .

I    '    m          a           s   n    a    i      l  .   .   .    .   :  )

I         m      o      v       e
           
                            v       e      r      y
 
                            v       e      r       y

                            v       e      -       e      -      e      -      e       -      r        y

S         L       O       W 

Hello.

I'm a human.

I move fast and have

BI-I-I-I-I-I-G 

FEET

Sorry Snail

Sorry Snail, I Slipped

I Slipped

Note: (Say this one many times. Start S   L   O   W, thengofast!!!)