minimal pair

Noun

Meaning

minimal pair (plural minimal pairs)

(phonology) A pair of words differing by only one phonetic segment or suprasegment, used to prove the validity of a proposed phoneme, toneme, or chroneme.
"Beach and bitch" and "bun and ban" are examples of minimal pairs.

Source: en.wiktionary.org

Related terms

near-minimal pair

Examples

Phonemic differentiation may vary between different dialects of a language, so that a particular minimal pair in one accent is a pair of homophones in another. Source: Internet

It is virtually impossible to find a minimal pair to distinguish English main from main, yet it seems uncontroversial to claim that the two consonants are distinct phonemes. Source: Internet

Japanese also prominently features geminate consonants, such as in the minimal pair 来た kita 'came' and 切った kitta 'cut'. Source: Internet

Close letter words and terms

minimal meal minimal medium minimal number minimal polynomial minimal possibility minimal price