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Vowel minimal pairs

Minimal pairs differ by a single sound, which makes them the fastest way to train your ear to a contrast you do not yet hear. If you cannot distinguish cat from cut when listening, you will not produce them differently either. Play them repeatedly until the difference becomes obvious.

Accent

15 words · intermediate · your accent and voice are remembered across the site. More options on the settings page.

The words

cat
cut
bed
bad
cop
cup
hat
hut
pen
pan
luck
lock
bag
bug
sat

More lists like this

Consonant minimal pairs
Think and sink, thin and tin, van and ban. Consonant contrasts that change the word entirely.
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Confusing word pairs
Affect and effect, desert and dessert, accept and except. Similar words, different sounds.
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Number and date words
Thirteen or thirty? Fifteen or fifty? The stress is the only clue. Hear the pairs contrasted.
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Magic E words
A silent final E that changes the vowel before it: hat to hate, kit to kite. Hear the difference.
15
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Long A sound words
The /eɪ/ sound in day, rain and eight, spelled six different ways. Train your ear to all of them.
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Long E sound words
The long ee sound in see, meat and field. Hear the tense vowel across all its spellings.
15
Show the 15 words

Keep practising

Browse every practice list or the word index, hear two accents back to back on Compare, or test your ear with the listening quiz.

To read the rules behind these words, see the pronunciation guides — including silent letters, word stress and American vs British. Or hear each accent on its own page: American, British, Australian.