Tone Practice – Tongue Twister

Huiqiang Zheng

22 Tone Practice – Tongue Twister

I. (Hua hu lu) 画葫芦

hú tú yòng bi huà hú lú ，

hú lú huà dé zhēn hú tú ，

hú tú bù néng suàn hú lú ，

yào huà hú lú bù hú tú ，

hú tú jué xīn bù hú tú ，

huà chū yī zhī dà hú lú 。

(Chinese script: 胡图用笔画葫芦，葫芦画得真糊涂，糊涂不能算葫芦，要画葫芦不糊涂，胡图决心不糊涂，画出一只大葫芦)

English translation: Hu Tu drew a gourd with brush strokes,
but the gourd he drew was truly a mess.
A messy gourd doesn’t count as a gourd—
to draw a proper gourd, it must not be messy.
Hu Tu made up his mind not to be messy,
and finally drew a big, perfect gourd.

II. Nan nan and Lan lan (南南和兰兰)

nán nán yǒu gè lán ，

lán lán zhuāng zhe pán pán ，

pán pán fàng zhe wǎn wǎn ，

wǎn wǎn shèng zhe fàn fàn 。

nán nán fān le lán lán ，

lán lán kòu le pán pán ，

pán pán dǎ le wǎn wǎn ，

wǎn wǎn sā le fàn fàn 。

(Chinese script: 南南有个篮，篮篮装着盘盘，盘盘放着碗碗，碗碗盛着饭饭。南南翻了篮篮，篮篮扣了盘盘，盘盘打了碗碗，碗碗撒了饭饭)

English translation:

Nannan has a basket,
in the basket are trays,
on the trays are bowls,
and in the bowls is rice.

Nannan flipped the basket,
the basket toppled the trays,
the trays broke the bowls,
and the bowls spilled the rice.

III. (D-T)

Da Duzi he Da Tuzi

Dà tùzi, dà dùzi

Dà dùzi de dà tùzi

Yào yǎo dà tùzi de dà dùzi.

(Chinese script: 大肚子和大兔子：大兔子，大肚子, 大肚子的大兔子，要咬大兔子的大肚子)

English Translation:

Big Belly and Big Bunny:
Big Bunny, Big Belly.
The Big-Bellied Big Bunny
wants to bite the Big Bunny’s Big Belly.

(H-F)

Fěnhóng qiáng shàng huà fènghuáng,

fènghuáng huà zài fěnhóng qiáng.

Hóng fènghuáng, fěn fènghuáng,

hóng fěn fènghuáng huā fènghuáng

(Chinese script: 粉红墙上画凤凰，凤凰画在粉红墙, 红凤凰，粉凤凰，红粉凤凰花凤凰)

English translation:

On a pink wall, a phoenix flies,
the phoenix painted with colored dyes.
Red phoenix, pink as well,
the red-pink phoenix paints so well.

(B-P)

bǔ pò pí rù zǐ bù rú bù bǔ pò pí rù zǐ

(Chinese script: 补破皮褥子不如不补破皮褥子)

English Translation: Mending a torn leather mattress is worse than not mending it at all.

IV.《小花猫》– Xiǎo huā māo

Xiǎo huā māo zhēn měilì, yītiān dào wǎn xiào mīmī mī,

Xiǎo huā māo wǒ ài nǐ, qǐng nǐ tóng wǒ lái yóuxì.

Xiǎo huā māo zhēn měilì, yītiān dōu huì xiào mīmī mī,

Xiǎo huā māo wǒ ài nǐ, qǐng nǐ tóng wǒ lái yóuxì.

(Chinese script)

小花猫真美丽，一天到晚笑眯眯眯，Little tabby cat, you’re so pretty,
smiling sweetly all day long.

小花猫我爱你，请你同我来游戏。Little tabby cat, I love you,
please come play games with me.

小花猫真美丽，一天都会笑眯眯眯，Little tabby cat, you’re so pretty,
always smiling all day long.

小花猫我爱你，请你同我来游戏。Little tabby cat, I love you,
please come play games with me.

Note：笑眯眯：xiǎo mī mī

游戏：yóuxì

我爱你 wǒ ài nǐ

美丽 měilì

English translation: Little kitty, soft and sweet,
smiling all day with a happy beat.
Little kitty, I love you,
won’t you come and play games too?
Little kitty, soft and bright,
smiling from morning till night.
Little kitty, I love you,
come and play the whole day through!

V.

Xiǎo māo xiǎo māo nǐ bié chǎo

Miāo miāo xiǎo māo jiào,

Miāo miāo xiǎo māo jiào

Xiǎo māo xiǎo māo, nǐ bié chǎo

Ā yí zuó yè shàng yè bān hái zài shuì jiào,

Xiǎo māo diǎn diǎn tóu qīng qīng de, qīng qīng de zǒu diào le.

《小猫小猫你别吵》
喵喵小猫叫，Meow meow, the little cat cries.