How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
- Depends on season of the year.
- Depends on size of woodchuck.
- None; woodchucks cannot chuck wood.
- Depends on type of wood.
EXPLANATION
Tongue twisters are fun word games used to challenge our
pronunciation. The alliteration in their phrasing allows people to
concentrate their practice on one sound to help with fluency. More than
just silly kids' games, tongue twisters are used by actors, singers, and
public speakers to work on their enunciation and articulation, so that
these performers can be understood in front of a crowd. As an English
learner, you can use tongue twisters
to help with pronunciation of certain sounds. In this woodchuck tongue twister, you can work on your "w"s. Round your lips and make a small gap between your teeth to make the "w" sound.
to help with pronunciation of certain sounds. In this woodchuck tongue twister, you can work on your "w"s. Round your lips and make a small gap between your teeth to make the "w" sound.
Woodchuck
"How much wood would a woodchuck chuck
if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
He would chuck, he would, as much as he could,
and chuck as much wood as a woodchuck would
if a woodchuck could chuck wood."
Improving Your Pronunciation
The "w" sound practiced in this tongue twister is voiced
and sometimes confused with the "v" sound, which is also voiced. The
difference between the two sounds is that the "w" uses rounded lips and
"v" is the voiced version of the voiceless "f" sound. Practice the
difference in these sounds with minimal pairs, or words that have only a
difference between the "w" and "v" sound.
why—vie
went—vent
went—vent
The Origin of "Woodchuck"
The "Woodchuck" tongue twister is from the refrain of the "Woodchuck
Song," by Robert Hobart Davis and Theodore F. Morse. The song debuted in
an American summer hit comedy musical "The Runaways," which had a run
of 167 performances between May and October in 1903 at New York City's
Casino Theater. The song was sold to consumers as sheet music featuring
actress/singer/comedian Fay Templeton and on Edison wax cylinders, which
predated flat phonograph records, performed by Ragtime Bob Roberts.
An Answer to the Question?
Unanswered questions don't always sit right with people. In 1988,
state wildlife conservation officer Richard Thomas of New York attempted
to figure out just how much a wood a woodchuck could chuck, if
a woodchuck was capable of doing so and had the inclination.
Woodchucks don't actually chuck (throw) wood, of course, but, since they
are a burrowing rodent, they do know well how to toss around some dirt.
So Thomas took to calculating a typical size of a woodchuck burrow,
which consists of three rooms and a tunnel leading to it that is roughly
six inches wide and extends 25 to 30 feet. He determined that 35 square
feet of soil needed to be excavated to create such a burrow. Knowing
that a cubic foot of soil weighs 20 pounds, he calculated that a
woodchuck can chuck 700 pounds of dirt. This calculation led Mr. Thomas,
by extension, to an answer to what was then an 85-year-old question.
Should a woodchuck be so inclined, Thomas concluded, he could chuck
about 700 pounds of wood as well.
More Tongue Twisters
Other American English tongue twisters include Peter Piper, She Sells Seashells by the Seashore, Betty Botter, and A Flea and a Fly.
