Minimal Pairs /tʃ/ And /dʒ/ (Cheap And Jeep)
9 pairs of words that differ only in /tʃ/ and /dʒ/. /tʃ/ is a voiceless palato-alveolar affricate and /dʒ/ is a voiced palato-alveolar affricate. They differ in voicing.
| With /tʃ/ | With /dʒ/ |
|---|---|
| chore /tʃɔː/ | jaw /dʒɔː/ |
| cheer /tʃɪə/ | jeer /dʒɪə/ |
| chest /tʃest/ | jest /dʒest/ |
| choke /tʃəʊk/ | joke /dʒəʊk/ |
| rich /rɪtʃ/ | ridge /rɪdʒ/ |
| lunch /lʌntʃ/ | lunge /lʌndʒ/ |
| perch /pɜːtʃ/ | purge /pɜːdʒ/ |
| search /sɜːtʃ/ | surge /sɜːdʒ/ |
| beseech /bɪˈsiːtʃ/ | besiege /bɪˈsiːdʒ/ |
Questions Students Ask
What are minimal pairs for /tʃ/ and /dʒ/?
Word pairs that differ only in /tʃ/ and /dʒ/ in the same position, such as chore and jaw. This page lists 9 of them.
Why practise minimal pairs?
Because the two words mean different things, a minimal pair proves that the two sounds are separate phonemes. Saying and hearing them side by side trains you to keep the sounds apart.
More Minimal Pairs
/p/ And /b/ (60)/t/ And /d/ (60)/k/ And /ɡ/ (60)/f/ And /v/ (34)/s/ And /z/ (33)/f/ And /p/ (60)/v/ And /b/ (23)/v/ And /w/ (15)/θ/ And /s/ (28)/θ/ And /t/ (27)/θ/ And /f/ (11)/ð/ And /d/ (17)/ð/ And /z/ (7)/s/ And /ʃ/ (49)/tʃ/ And /ʃ/ (27)/tʃ/ And /dʒ/ (9)/j/ And /dʒ/ (8)/l/ And /r/ (60)/m/ And /n/ (60)/n/ And /ŋ/ (12)/h/ And /f/ (42)/ɪ/ And /iː/ (60)/ɪ/ And /e/ (51)/e/ And /æ/ (44)/æ/ And /ʌ/ (60)/æ/ And /ɑː/ (22)/ʌ/ And /ɑː/ (25)/ɒ/ And /ʌ/ (36)/ɒ/ And /ɔː/ (12)/ɜː/ And /ɑː/ (22)/e/ And /eɪ/ (52)/əʊ/ And /ɔː/ (60)/aɪ/ And /eɪ/ (60)/ɪə/ And /eə/ (28)