但,绕口令是多少代人创作、提炼、升华而成的,可以说是群众集体智慧的结晶。因此,美国人所说的绕口令,也不乏有看了或读来让人哑然失笑的佳句。让大家来看下面的例句:
1. Sixty-six sick chicks
2. The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick.
例句1可以说是美国人说的最简单的绕口令了,很容易理解;例句2还被列入《吉尼斯世界纪录大全》。的这里还要说明的是,把美国人说的绕口令译成汉语,同时又能让中国人听了捧腹大笑,这几乎是不可能的。就拿被《吉尼斯世界纪录大全》收入的例句2来讲,翻译成中文只能是:第六位生病的酋长第六只羊病了。把这句话说给不懂英语的人听,是不会感觉有趣,不会发笑的。但对于懂英语的人来讲,学说英语绕口令,无论从训练口齿的伶俐性还是知道英语语言的特征来讲,都是一个非常好的素材。
下面再提几个容易见到的绕口令,相信在你耐心地读,细心地品味后,最后会发出会心的笑声,感叹美国人的睿智的。
3. She sells seashells by the seashore.
4. Amidst the mists and coldest frosts, with barest wrists and stoutest1 boasts, he thrust his fist against the posts, and insists he sees the ghosts.
5. Betty Botter bought a bit of butter,But,she said,this butter is bitter,if I put it in my batter2,it will make my batter bitter, but a bit of better butter will make my batter better,So Betty Botty bought a bit of better butter, and it makes her batter better. 最后,再向读者推荐一则被美国很多绕口令喜好者觉得是最难的,最拗口的绕口令。
6.Theophilus Thistle, the thistlesifter,sifted a sieve3 of unsifted thistles. If Theophilus Thistles, where is the sieve of unsifted thistles Theophilus Thistle, the thistlesifter,sifted.