Minimal Pair List Vowels 1 and 7, /i/ and /ɔ/ 476 pairs


   Minimal pair: Vowels 1 and 7, /i/ and /ɔ/ 476 pairs

There are many spellings for /i/ in this list, typically <ee>, <ea> and <eCe>. The vowel /ɔ/ is most often spelled <or>, but also <aw> as in saw , <au> as in author , <al> as in talk , <a> after <w> as in war or walk , <wo> in sword and occasionally <our> as in source , and in one word <oa>, broad . Since /ɔ/ would have a closing -r glide in many words for speakers of a rhotic accent, many of these pairs would not be minimal in, say, the USA.

Vowels /i/ and /ɔ/ would hardly ever be confused in speech, being about as far apart in articulatory setting as possible.

Note the special case of key / corps and keys / corps , quay / corps and quays / corps . Corps counts as a homograph since the anglicised plural is not shown in the spelling.

Note also the pairs arising from a linking -r in compounds or inflected forms: overeat/overwrought, and keyring/coring.

Interesting pairs include:

appealing appalling
cheeky chalky
teacher torture
wield walled

The density of the contrast is high at 8.8%. The 476 pairs make 285 semantic contrasts, a semantic loading of 59%.

aether author
appeal appal
  appealed appalled 
  appealing appalling
  appealingly appallingly 
  appeals appals
B boar
  B's boars
B bore
  B's bores
bailee bailor
  bailees bailors
be boar
be bore
beach bortsch
beak balk
  beaks balks
bead bawd 
  beads bawds
  beady bawdy 
bead board
  beading boarding
  beads boards
bead bored
beak balk
  beaks balks
beak baulk
  beaks baulks
bean born
bean borne
bean Bourne
beat bought
bee boar
  bees boars
bee bore
  bees bores
beech bortsch
been born
been borne
been Bourne
beet bought
Breda broader
breed broad
  breeder broader
  breeds broads
C saw
  C's saws
C soar
  C's soars
C sore
  C's sores
cease sauce
  ceased sauced
  ceases sauces
  ceasing saucing
cease source
  ceases sources
cede sawed
cede soared
cede sword
  cedes swords
cheek chalk
  cheeked chalked
  cheekier chalkier
  cheekiest chalkiest
  cheeling chalking
  cheeks chalks
  cheeky chalky
cheese chaws 
cheese chores
compete comport
  competed comported
  competes comports
  competing comporting
conceit consort
  conceited consorted
  conceits consorts
creel crawl
  creels crawls 
D daw
  D's daws
D door
  D's doors
dean dawn 
  deans dawns
E awe
  E's awes
E oar
  E's oars
E o'er
E or
E ore
  E's ores
eager auger
eager augur
ease awes
ease oars
ease ores
eat aught
eat ought
eel all
eel awl
  eels awls
eke auk
  ekes auks
ether author
feast forced
feat fort
  feats forts
feat fought
fee faugh
fee for
fee fore
fee four
feed ford
  feeding fording
  feeds fords
feel fall
  feeling falling
  feels falls 
fees fours
feet fort
feet fought
femur former
fiend fawned 
flea flaw
  fleas flaws 
flea floor
  fleas floors
flee flaw
  flees flaws
flee floor
  flees floors
fleetest flautist 
foresee foresaw
freed fraud
G jaw
  G's jaws
gee jaw
geese gorse
ghee gore
guarantee guarantor
  guarantees guarantors
he haw 
he hoar
he whore
heal hall
  heals halls
heal haul
  healed hauled
  healing hauling 
  heals hauls
heed hawed
heed hoard
  heeded hoarded
  heeding hoarding
  heeds hoards
heed horde
  heeds hordes
heel hall
  heels halls
heel haul
  heeled hauled
  heeling hauling
  heels hauls
Heysham Horsham
keel call 
  keeled called
  keeling calling
  keels calls
keel caul
keels cauls
keen corn
  keened corned
  keening corning
  keens corns
keener corner
keep Corp
keeps corpse
key caw
  keyed cawed
  keying cawing
  keys caws
key core
  keys cores
key corps
  keys corps
keyed chord
keyed cord
keyed cored
keys cause
keyring coring
knead gnawed 
knee gnaw
  knees gnaws
knee nor
lea law
  leas laws
lea lor
lea lore
lead laud
  leading lauding
  leads lauds
lead lord
  leading lording
  leads lords
lean lawn 
  leans lawns
lean lorn
leaner Lorna
lee law
  lees laws
lee lor
lee lore
Leeds lauds
Leeds lords
Leigh law
Leigh lor
Leigh lore
lessee lessor
lessees lessors
me maw
me more
mead Maud
meal maul
  meals mauls
mealie Morley
mealy Morley
mean morn
  means morns
mean mourn
  meaning mourning
  means mourns
meaning morning
  meanings mornings
meaner mourner
meed Maud
meter mortar
  meters mortars
metre mortar
  metres mortars
mi maw
mi more
mien morn
  miens morns
mien mourn
  miens mourns
mortgagee mortgagor
  mortgagees mortgagors
neat naught 
neat nought
'neath north
need gnawed
Nice Norse
niece Norse
overeat overwrought
oversea oversaw
oversee oversaw
P paw
  P's paws
P pore
  P's pores
P pour
  P's pours
P's pause
pea paw
  peas paws
pea pore
  peas pores
pea pour
  peas pours
peach porch
  peaches porches
peak pork
peaky pawky
peal pall
  pealed palled 
  pealing palling
  peals palls 
peal Paul
peal pawl
  peals pawls
peas pause
pease pause
pease paws
pease pores
pease pours
peaky pawky
peat port
pee paw
  peed pawed
  peeing pawing
  pees paws
pee pore
  peed pored
  pees pores
pee pour
  peed poured
  pees pours
pees pause
peek pork
peel pall
  peeled palled
  peeling palling
  peels palls
peel Paul
peel pawl
  peels pawls
peeler Paula
peeper pauper
  peepers paupers
peed pawed
  peeing pawing
peke pork
Pete port
peter porter
  peters porters
pique pork
preen prawn
  preened prawned 
  preening prawning 
  preens prawns 
quay caw
  quays caws
quay core
  quays cores
quay corps
  quays corps
quays cause
re raw
re roar
read roared
reed roared
repeat report
  repeatable reportable
  repeated reported
  repeatedly reportedly
  repeater reporter
  repeaters reporters
  repeating reporting
  repeats reports
scene sawn 
sea saw
  seas saws
sea soar
  seas soars
sea sore
  seas sores
seat sort
  seated sorted
  seating sorting
  seats sorts
seat sought
see saw
  seeing sawing
  seen sawn
  sees saws
see soar
  sees soars
see sore
  sees sores
seed sawed
seed soared
seed sword
  seeds swords
  seedsman swordsman
  seedsman swordsmen
  seedsmen swordsman
  seedsmen swordsmen
seize saws
seize soars
seize sores
she shore
sheen Sean
sheen shorn
sheet short
  sheeting shorting
  sheets shorts
ski score
  ski'd scored
  skis scores
sneeze snores
squeak squawk 
  squeaked squawked
  squeaker squawker
  squeakers squawkers
  squeaking squawking
  squeaks squawks 
squeal squall
  squealed squalled
  squealing squalling
  squeals squalls
squeeze squaws 
steal stall
  stealing stalling
  steals stalls
steam storm
  steamed stormed
  steamier stormier
  steamiest stormiest
  steaming storming
  steams storms
  steamy stormy
steed stored
steel stall
  steeled stalled
  steeling stalling
  steels stalls
Swede sward
T tor
  T's tors
T tore
T's tawse
tea tor
tea tore
teach torch
  teaches torches
teacher torture
  teachers tortures
teak talk
teak torque
teal tall
teas tawse
teas tors
tease tawse
  teases tawses
tease tors
teat taught
teat taut
teat tort
  teats torts
tee tore
tee tor
  tees tors
tees tawse
teeny tawny
teeter tauter
ti tor
ti tore
warrantee warrantor
  warrantees warrantors
we war
we wore
weak walk 
  weaker walker
weal wall
  weals walls
weald walled
wean warn
  weaned warned
  weaning warning
  weans warns
wean worn
weaves wharves
wee war
wee wore
weed ward
  weeded warded
  weeding warding
  weeds wards
week walk
  weeks walks 
weep warp 
  weeping warping 
  weeps warps
wees wars
wheat wart 
wheel wall
  wheeled walled
  wheeling walling
  wheels walls
wheeze wars
wield walled
ye yaw 
ye yore
ye your