Spanish (Spain) minimal pairs

Minimal pairs: pena and peña

/n/vs/ɲ/

Hard for speakers of English and German, who either say a plain n or split ñ into n plus y, as in “canyon”.

The difference. For n the tongue tip touches the ridge behind the teeth; for ñ the middle of the tongue presses flat against the roof of the mouth, and it is one sound, not two.

Practice all pairs

8 word pairs

Say both words in each pair. If Tono colors one of them amber or red, that is the sound to work on.

pena peña Practice
cana caña Practice
mono moño Practice
sonar soñar Practice
cuna cuña Practice
una uña Practice
sueno sueño Practice
cano caño Practice

Contrast sentences

Both sounds in one sentence: the real test of whether you can switch between them.

El mono lleva un moño rojo. Practice
Tengo una uña rota. Practice
Anoche soñé que sonaba el teléfono. Practice
Pon la cuña debajo de la cuna. Practice

How to practice minimal pairs

Listen to both words in Tono first, one after the other, until you can hear the difference.
Say the pair slowly and exaggerate the difference. Check that both words come back green.
Say the contrast sentences at normal speed. That is where the mix-up usually comes back.

More minimal pairs

English minimal pairs French minimal pairs German minimal pairs