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By I'm weird, ugly, and cute! on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

Completely different and impossible to confuse
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By Richard on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

yeah it’s different
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By Tattoo Ted on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

The difference is very slight but at least it is there.

Some words are spelt differently but sound the same such as:

Their, they’re, there

But the context will normally tell you which word is intended when it is spoken.

Good luck with your English studies.
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By Lesley on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

They are very different.

Carp is a fish, and cup is a small glass with a handle for coffee or tea
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By avloki on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

not for me but i only speak english but when i here another language it sounds very weird to me in the same way so just keep learning and you should get used to it.
if not mistakes like that arent bad cause if you understand the rest of what they said then you can use context to fill in what you didnt with out having to ask them to repeat
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By Ashy on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

to someone who has always spoken english those words seem to sound VERY different. But i suppose when you think about it deeper, you are right. the difference does seem very slight. My Oma (was dutch) and she used to pronounce every letter in every word- just to be sure she said it right. So for instance, when she said milk she would pronounce it milak (making sure the l and the k were pronounced) same with knee, she would pronounce it k- nee almost like two seperate words.
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By Italie2001 on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

It really depends on the accent. Being Scottish, if I were to say Carp and Cup, there would be no confusing them as they sound completely different, however, if I had certain English accents then I can see that the sounds are very similar. You do have to look at the entire sentence that is being spoken in order to determine what the word is. I can see that it would be difficult to learn.

Best Wishes
x
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By Steven on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

I can see how they are similar. I think the most important thing is context. I would never get them confused because I wouldn’t mistake heart for hut. "I stabbed him right in the hut!" Whaaaa?? Lol.
I would guess your native language is french. Je peux te dire que j’ai grands problèmes avec les mots "au-dessous" et "au-dessus." I cannot tell them apart for the life of me. I just hope that after living in France longer I will be able to.
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By Beatha. Grá. Gáire. on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

I’d like to say that English is not my mother tongue but it is my primary language now and I’ve been speaking it for years.

Heart is pronounced with emphasis on the "art" - the "r" mainly
Hut is pronounced with emphasis on the "ut" - the "uh" sound

Thin is pronounced with emphasis on the "in" - the "n" mainly
Thing is pronounced with emphasis on the "ing" - the "g" sound

Bard is pronounced with emphasis on the "ar" - the "r" mainly
Bud is pronounced with emphasis on the "ud" - the "uh" sound

Carp is pronounced with emphasis on the "ar" - the "r" mainly
Cup is pronounced with emphasis on the "up" - the "uh" sound

By the looks of this, I think the "r" sound and the "uh" sound are what is proving difficult to you. But the differences are there with these words.
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By 雅威的烤面包机 on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

What is your native language? It’s good to see that you are aware of the different sounds in English and your native language, but it could provide useful for the rest of us trying to help you.

There is a small but distinct and important difference between all of the words that you say your are having difficulties with. It appears that you are having the most difficulty with /r/. Are you having trouble saying these words, or just hearing the differences between them?

For "heart" — "hut," the /r/ sound is not the only difference. The vowels are different, also. The mouth is more open for "heart," using the /a/ sound that is like the one found in "father." For "hut," the mouth is more closed, with the tongue closer to the roof of the mouth.

For "thin" — "thing," the different placement of the tongue creates the different sounds. The /n/ in "thin" has the tip of the tongue at the front of the roof of the mouth, right behind the teeth. The /ng/ in "thing" is pronounced with the back of the tongue against the back of the roof of the mouth, making a nasal sound. The vowel sounds are different here, as well. The /i/ in "thin" is short, sounding like the /i/ in "bit," "sit," etc. The /i/ in "thing" is often pronounced like the /a/ in "ate" and "made."

For "bard" — "bud," again, there is an /r/ sound as well as the vowels being different. The /a/ in "bard" is like it was for "heart." The /u/ in "bud" is like it is for "hut."

For "carp" — "cup," it is the same issue as "heart" and "hut."

As for confusion with native speakers, I have never confused these words; not that I can remember, anyway. The sounds are very different to my ear. What also helps is the context; the vast majority of the time, these words would not be able to replace the other in the same context.

Another reason you may be having difficulties is your location. Where are you? Different accents in English may make these words sound more similar than in my Midwest accent; for instance, in the Boston area, the /r/ sound is often left out, so the words would sound very similar. But, again, context is everything.
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Working on my master’s in linguistics and teaching English to speakers of other languages.

By Niccolas on Dec 17, 2009 | Reply

I’m an american english speaker, but I tend to use a british accent (just the way my mouth is) and frankly, I can’t really see what you find similar enough to confuse the words with one another. Here is something you can do, that I hear when I’m talking. Just focus on the vowels when you’re listening to an englishman talk. You’ll be able to comprehend the differences.
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