Improve your pronunciation and listening skills by learning about minimal pairs.
- Listen to learn about minimal pairs and how they can help you.
- After you’ve done that, continue to the vowel minimal pairs. Listen and repeat as you listen to the podcasts.
- You’ll also find a quiz at the end!
Transcript:
Welcome to the English with Brian Podcast. Have you ever heard of Minimal Pairs? In today’s episode, we will be discussing Minimal Pairs, what they are, and how they can help improve your pronunciation and listening skills. Stay tuned.
Do you know what a Minimal Pair is? No? Well, let me explain Minimal pairs are two words that sound very similar but are different because of one sound, or phoneme. For many learners, it is difficult to recognize the difference between the two sounds and to produce these two sounds. Such as vowel minimal pairs /e/ and /ɪ/ desk disk and in consonants such as minimal pairs /l/ and /r/ alive arrive. Can you hear the difference? Can you make these sounds?
By doing exercises focused on Minimal Pairs, you can train yourself to hear the differences between sounds more clearly. You can also begin to identify and improve upon sounds that are difficult for you to say. I will be sharing with you several pronunciation drills throughout the podcast. I will say two words from a minimal pair set and give you some time to repeat these words aloud. It is very important that you actually say the words during the drill. Don’t just say them in your mind. Aside from training your ears, you are also training your tongue and the muscles in your mouth to produce these sounds. I know, it might be a little embarrassing. But trust me, we can’t improve our language skills without speaking.
For more information on Minimal Pairs please visit https://www.soundsofenglish.org/ where you can find videos and pictures to help you to understand how to produce many difficult sounds.
Transcript:
In this episode, we will work with the sounds found in the following minimal pairs: ship sheep/bit bet /bet bat/ trek truck/west worst. Please listen and repeat out loud. Can you hear the difference?
Transcript:
In this episode, we will work with the sounds found in the following minimal pairs:sell sale / cat cut / back bark / fox forks / shut shirt. Please listen and repeat out loud. Can you hear the difference?
Transcript:
In this episode, we will work with the sounds found in the following minimal pairs: full fool / part pot / car core / form firm / chalk choke. Please listen and repeat out loud. Can you hear the difference?
Transcript:
In this episode, we will work with the sounds found in the following minimal pairs: day die/ spear spare/ leer lure/ cope cop/ phoned found. Please listen and repeat out loud. Can you hear the difference?
