Minimal Pairs – Homophones

Words that sound the same but are spelled differently,and ofcourse have a different
meaning.

It's time to drive some of your sino-tibetan students crazy

Procedure: Distribute the list of words to your class. Read one word from each pair. Read
it three times with a normal intonation. Have the students circle the word they hear.
Check the correct answers with the class, and then run them through some choral and
individual pronunciation drills.

1. rips --- lips

2. right --- light
3. read --- lead
4. Paris --- palace
5. crime --- climb
6. grass --- glass
7. arrive --- alive
8. correct --- collect
9. crowd --- cloud
10. pray --- play
11. red --- led
12. free --- flea
13. ride --- lied
14. fry --- fly
15. river --- liver

I made some sentence sets with the same vocabulary. Follow the same procedure as
above:

1. She has nice lips. --- She has nice rips.

2. That's right. --- That's light!
3. If you read, I'll follow along. --- If you lead, I'll follow along.
4. The Paris police are here. --- The palace police are here.
5. It's a terrible crime. --- It's a terrible climb.
6. Don't touch the grass. --- Don't touch the glass.
7. I'll correct them. --- I'll collect them.
8. A crowd was around him. --- A cloud was around him.
9. Marianna likes to pray. --- Marianna likes to play.
10. The dog could be red. ---The dog could be led.
11. She wants to know
12. I like the liver. --- I like the river.
13. I wish I could fly. --- I wish I could fry.
14. I'm not sure if I ride. --- I'm not sure if I lied.
15. I got a flea bite at the buffet. --- I got a free bite at the buffet.
Time to drive some of your hispanic students crazy. Follow the procedures above.

1. chair --- share

2. cheap --- sheep
3. cheat --- sheet
4. cheered --- sheered
5. shin --- chin
6. chines --- shines
7. chirt --- shirt
8. chip --- ship
9. shuck --- chuck

Here are some sentence sets with the same vocabulary. Some of them test the bounds of
metaphor.;-) Follow the same procedure as above:

1. I like to chair at a meeting. --- I like to share at a meeting.

2. He thought the cheese was cheap. --- He thought the cheese was sheep.
3. The cheat failed the strength test. --- The sheet failed the strength test.
4. The crowded cheered when she began walking. --- The crowded sheered when she
began walking.
5. I hurt my shin. --- I hurt my chin.
6. We are finished when the bell chines. --- We are finished when the bell shines.
7. The geologist brought a chirt. --- The geologist brought a shirt.
8. The engineers made a better chip. --- The engineers made a better ship.
9. Shuck some of the new corn. --- Chuck some of the new corn.