Minimal pairs change only one phoneme in a word in order to practice on one sound.

Minimal Pairs

1) YouTube video: How to use minimal pairs
2) Another YouTube video: How to how to use minimal pairs

Online tools for practicing minimals pairs.

1) ShipOrSheep.com
2) ManyThings.org
3) The English Club
4) English: Speak like a native.

Minimal Pair Examples

/uː/ and /ʊ/

fool – full
Luke – look
pool – pull
cooed – could
kook – cook
kooky – cookie
pooled – pulled
pooling – pulling
pools – pulls
shooed – should
stewed – stood
suit – soot
who’d – hood
wooed – would/wood

/iː/ and /ɪ/

heat – hit
beat – bit
reach – rich
green – grin
peel – pill
seater – sitter

/æ/ and /ʌ/

back – buck
ban – bun
bat – but
swam – swum
calf – cuff
bass – bus
mast – must
cam – come
lack – luck

/aɪ/ and /eɪ/

height – hate
light – late
plight – plate
tile – tail
mild – mailed
while – whale
file – fail
height – hate

Final Sound

/d/ and /t/

grade – great
hard – heart
made – mate
played – plate
raid – rate
ride – right

/z/ and /s/

eyes – ice
lose – loose
phase – face
plays – place
rise – rice;