A big blue blob blew bubbles by the bay.
Seven of the nine words start with B. Two of them, blue and blew, sound exactly the same.
👅 Sounds to Practise
- B /b/, as in big, bubbles, by and bay. Press your lips together, then pop them open, and let your throat buzz.
- BL /bl/, as in blue, blob and blew. Start with the lip pop, then lift the tongue tip straight to the ridge behind the top teeth.
Quick test: say bay, then pay. For bay you feel a buzz in your throat. For pay you do not.
🐢 Start Slow
Say each chunk slowly.
A big blue blob
blew bubbles
by the bay.
🚶 Normal Speed
Say it at a natural pace, with the stressed syllables in capitals:
A BIG BLUE BLOB BLEW BUBbles by the BAY.
🚀 Tongue-Twister Mode
Say it three times in a row, as fast as you can:
A big blue blob blew bubbles by the bay.
If it falls apart, that is normal. Slow down and try again. Pop the B lightly, and move quickly to the L.
🤯 Why Is This So Difficult?
The lips pop again and again, and the tongue has to jump to the L right after.
big / blue / blob / blew / bubbles / by / bay
- Lips and tongue work in turn, so a late move turns blob into bob.
- Blue and blew are said the same, but they are spelled differently. A reader may stop to check.
- By and bay start the same but end with different vowels.
👀 Words to Notice
These pairs change when you swap the first sound:
- big / pig
- bay / pay
- blue / glue
- blob / glob
Two words in the twister sound the same but are spelled differently: blue and blew. Words like these are called homophones.
Say each pair slowly. Buzz for B, and use a puff of air for P.
🏆 OddLingo Challenge
- Round 1: say it slowly, one chunk at a time, with no mistakes.
- Round 2: say the whole twister once at normal speed.
- Round 3: say it three times fast without stopping.
Bonus round: if you survived all three, try this one:
Brave Ben blew big blue balloons.
🔗 Related Practice
- Brave Brian's Blueberries: B and BR against BL.
- Victor's Blue Van: another B and V twister with blue.