Minimal Pair List Consonants /h/ versus /ŋ/, 0 pairs


   Minimal pair: Consonants /h/ versus /ŋ/, 0 pairs

It was no surprise that the dictionary search failed to find any words with this pairing. The /h/ only occurs initially or before a stressed vowel in words such as behind . The /ŋ/ sound only occurs medially or finally, and when medial normally before an unstressed inflection as in singer . Therefore in the standard vocabulary no minimal pairs can occur. In loan words anything is possible, of course. There is a Thai brand of beer called Singha (meaning 'lion'), and this is often pronounced /sɪŋɑ/ by English speakers. (In Thai the final syllable is silent so the beer is called /sɪŋ/ by Thai speakers.) If there were an Indian state of Sihar to rhyme with the state of Bihar, then that might be a minimal pair.

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