What is likely to happen when words are distorted in tongue twisters?

When words are distorted in tongue twisters, the most likely effect is a reduced memory span. This occurs because tongue twisters often involve rapid, successive speech of phonetically similar sounds, which can create confusion. As individuals attempt to process and articulate these challenging sequences, the cognitive load increases, leading to difficulties in maintaining the information in working memory. This increased challenge can overwhelm one’s capacity to hold onto the words long enough to say them correctly, ultimately leading to errors and a lower memory span for the phrases involved.

In contrast to the other options, this phenomenon emphasizes the limitations of working memory and the struggle of encoding and retrieving distorted phonetic information while under pressure. This is particularly relevant in tongue twisters where the rapid nature and the complexity challenge a person's verbal processing abilities.