S and SH tongue twisters
S and SH use nearly the same tongue position, which is exactly why they are so easy to mix up. These twisters train the small switch between the two.
Practise these 20 twisters
Sheep should sleep in a shed.
Easy · sounds: sh, s, sl · traditional
Round your lips for the 'sh' in sheep, should, and shed, then relax them for the 's' in sleep.
Say it 3 times fast
Time three clean repetitions.
Clean repetitions
Aim for 5 in a row without a slip.
Record and listen back
How to practise
- For S, keep your lips spread slightly and your tongue tip near the top teeth.
- For SH, round your lips and pull the tongue back a little.
- Exaggerate the lip change at first: spread for S, round for SH.
All s and sh tongue twisters, easiest first
- 1.
Sheep should sleep in a shed.
Easy · sounds: sh, s, sl · traditional
Round your lips for the 'sh' in sheep, should, and shed, then relax them for the 's' in sleep.
- 2.
She sees cheese.
Easy · sounds: sh, s, ch, z · traditional
Make 'sh' a soft rush of air, 's' a thin hiss, and 'ch' a quick burst that starts with the tongue pressed to the roof of your mouth.
- 3.
Shaun shushed six sleepy sheep.
Easy · sounds: sh, s · SceneDub original
Push your lips forward for the 'sh' in Shaun, shushed, and sheep, and smile slightly for the 's' in six and sleepy.
- 4.
Silly snakes sip soup in the shady sunshine.
Easy · sounds: s, sh, sn · SceneDub original
Hiss each 's' like a snake with your tongue just behind your top teeth, and push your lips out for the 'sh' in shady and sunshine.
- 5.
She sells seashells by the seashore. The shells she sells are surely seashells. So if she sells shells on the seashore, I'm sure she sells seashore shells.
Medium · sounds: s, sh · traditional
Keep your tongue tip just behind your top teeth with relaxed lips for 's', then pull the tongue slightly back and push your lips forward for 'sh'.
- 6.
Six slippery snails slid slowly seaward.
Medium · sounds: s, sl, sn · traditional
Hold a narrow 's' and move straight into the 'l' or 'n' without adding a vowel, so slippery never becomes 'suh-lippery'.
- 7.
Silly Sally swiftly shooed seven silly sheep. The seven silly sheep Silly Sally shooed shilly-shallied south.
Medium · sounds: s, sh, l · traditional
Take shilly-shallied slowly, rounding your lips for each 'sh' there and relaxing them for the 's' in silly and Sally.
- 8.
Selfish shellfish.
Medium · sounds: s, sh, l, f · traditional
Spread your lips for the 's' that starts selfish and round them for the 'sh' that starts shellfish, since both words end in the same '-fish'.
- 9.
Shirley's short sister Cecily sews seashell shawls.
Medium · sounds: sh, s · SceneDub original
Let your lips do the switching: rounded for the 'sh' in Shirley, short, and shawls, relaxed for the 's' in sister, Cecily, and sews.
- 10.
Seven shy sea serpents shared a single seashell sofa.
Medium · sounds: s, sh · SceneDub original
Keep sea and shy apart by spreading your lips for 's' and rounding them for 'sh', especially in seashell, where both sounds meet.
- 11.
Six squealing squirrels squashed squishy squash.
Medium · sounds: skw, s, sh · SceneDub original
Say each 'squ' as three quick parts, 's', 'k', and a rounded 'w', and give squashed, squishy, and squash their soft 'sh'.
- 12.
Shy sheep chew cheap shoes.
Medium · sounds: sh, ch · SceneDub original
For 'ch' stop the air for an instant with your tongue against the roof of your mouth, and for 'sh' let it flow, so chew and shoes stay different.
- 13.
Irish wristwatch, Swiss wristwatch.
Hard · sounds: r, sh, s, ch · traditional
Say wrist and watch as two clear beats, moving from the 'st' straight into a rounded 'w' without slipping in an extra 'sh'.
- 14.
I saw Susie sitting in a shoeshine shop. Where she sits she shines, and where she shines she sits.
Hard · sounds: s, sh · traditional
Spread your lips slightly for 's' and round them for 'sh', so sits and shines never trade their opening sounds.
- 15.
Fresh fried fish, fish fresh fried, fried fish fresh, fish fried fresh.
Hard · sounds: f, fr, sh · traditional
Keep the 'r' in fresh and fried but never in fish, and round your lips for each final 'sh'.
- 16.
Cheap ship trip.
Hard · sounds: ch, sh, tr, p · traditional
Start cheap with a full stop of the tongue against the roof of your mouth and ship with friction only, then close your lips on every 'p'.
- 17.
Mrs. Smith's Fish Sauce Shop.
Hard · sounds: s, sh, th · traditional
Move from the 'th-s' at the end of Smith's straight into the 'f' of fish, and keep the 's' of sauce distinct from the 'sh' of shop.
- 18.
Sasha's sushi shop sells sixty sashimi sets.
Hard · sounds: s, sh · SceneDub original
Sasha, sushi, and sashimi each switch from 's' to 'sh' mid-word, so spread your lips for 's' and push them forward for 'sh' every time.
- 19.
Fresh shrimp shrink; shrunken shrimp shrivel.
Hard · sounds: sh, shr, fr · SceneDub original
Build each 'shr' by moving from a rounded 'sh' straight into 'r' with no vowel in between, and let fresh end on a soft 'sh' before shrimp begins.
- 20.
Shoe shop sock stock.
Hard · sounds: sh, s, st, k · SceneDub original
Round your lips for shoe and shop, spread them for sock and stock, and close the back of the tongue firmly on the final 'k' of sock and stock.
More tongue twister sets
Warmed up? Put it to work with a free voice acting script or dub a scene online.
Frequently asked questions
What's an easy s and sh tongue twister to start with?
Try "Sheep should sleep in a shed." Say it slowly three times before speeding up.
What's the hardest s and sh tongue twister here?
"Irish wristwatch, Swiss wristwatch." Say wrist and watch as two clear beats, moving from the 'st' straight into a rounded 'w' without slipping in an extra 'sh'.
How many times should I repeat a tongue twister?
Aim for five clean repetitions in a row at a comfortable speed, then three times fast. A few minutes a day is enough for a warm-up; stop if your jaw or voice feels strained.