Consonants /v/ versus /ʧ/, 75 pairs     [vatchat.html]

The /v/ sound is spelled with <v> or <ve>, while the /ʧ/ sound is spelled <ch>, <tch> or <tu> in feature.

The contrast is between a voiced labio-dental fricative and a voiceless alveolar affricate. It is not a problem for any learners.

Interesting pairs include:

fever feature
river richer
vulva vulture

The mean density value is 1.8%. The list makes 46 semantic distinctions, a loading of 61%.

 	
breve breach 
cove coach 
Denver denture
divvies ditches 
dove Dutch 
Eve each
ever etcher 
fever feature 
  fevered featured 
  fevers features 
have hatch 
  having hatching 
lav latch 
leave leach 
  leaving leaching 
miniver miniature 
move mooch 
  moving mooching 
  moved mooched
movies mooches 
Nov notch
peeve peach 
  peeving peaching 
  peeved peached
reeve reach 
rev retch
  revving retching
rev wretch
river richer 
rove roach 
serve search 
  serving searching 
  served searched
server searcher 
  servers searchers 
starve starch 
  starving starching 
  starved starched
vain chain 
vamp champ 
  vamped champed 
  vamping champing 
  vamps champs 
vane chain
  vanes chains 
vary chary 
vase chars 
vat chat 
  vats chats 
veer cheer 
  veered cheered 
  veering cheering 
  veers cheers 
vein chain
  veined chained 
  veins chains
very cherry
vest chest 
  vests chests 
vex Czechs 
vex checks
vex cheques
vied chide 
vine chine 
vine chaine
  vines chines 
vivid chivied 
voice choice 
  voices choices 
vow chow 
  vows chows 
vox chocks 
V's cheese
vulva vulture
  vulvas vultures 

John Higgins, Shaftesbury, November 2010
updated Chiang Mai, 2024