Minimal Pair final /m/ and /n/
as in am and an
Below is a list of words that vary only by one ending with the sound /m/ and the other ending with the sound /n/.
You can use this list to practise the sounds, or as a list of words to be careful in pronouncing.
Both sounds are produced with the air coming through your nose. With /m/ that is achieved by closing your lips, whereas with /n/ the lips are open and your tongue touching the top of your mouth behind your teeth blocks the air. Even students who do not find these sounds difficult to recognise and produce at the beginning of syllables can have problems when they are at the end of words.
Elementary
am an
Pre-Intermediate
cam can
comb cone
foam phone
home hone
mam man
meme mean
sum son
term turn
time tine
Intermediate
beam been
came cane
dime dine
game gain
gnome known
gum gun
seam scene
seem seen
spam span
sum sun
team teen
trams trans-
Upper-Intermediate
boom boon
clam clan
dorm dawn
fame feign
gram gran
same sane
scam scan
skim skin
term tern
tome tone
Advanced
beam bean
blame blain
deem dean
dim din
dumb dun
gleam glean
grim grin
sim sin
sperm spurn
teem teen
tomb 'toon
thyme tine