Consonants /g/ versus /s/, 242 pairs     [gamesame.html]

The spelling of /g/ is <g> or <gg>, but we also see <gh> in burgher. The /s/ sound is spelled <s>, <ss> or <c> before <e> or <i>. We also see the exceptional initial <ca> in Caesar.

This is a contrast between a voiced stop and a voiceless fricative, well separated in the mouth. It does not cause any problems.

The only taboo word pair is pig/piss.

Interesting pairs include:

burgher bursar
erg Erse
gallery salary
gammon salmon
geezer Caesar
gopher sofa
Gurkha circa
shaggy chassis
Virgo verso

The figure for the mean density is 1.4%. The set makes 134 semantic contrasts, a loading of 55%.

    	  
bag bass
beg Bess 
beget beset
  begets besets
bog boss
  bogged bossed
  bogging bossing
boggy bossy
  boggier bossier
  boggiest bossiest
bug bus
  bugging busing
  bugged bussed
buggies buses
burgher bursar
  burghers bursars
cog cos
corgis courses
crag crass
dog doss
  dogging dossing
  dogged dossed
doggies dosses
egg S 
erg Erse 
flog floss
  flogged flossed
  flogging flossing
fog fosse
fug fuss
fuggy fussy
  fuggier fussier
  fuggiest fussiest
gable sable
  gables sables
gad sad
Gael sail
  Gaels sails
Gael sale
  Gaels sales
gag gas			 
  gagged gassed
  gagging gassing
gag sag
  gagged sagged
  gagging gassing
  gags sags
gage sage
  gages sages
gain sane
gain seine
  gained seined
  gaining seining
  gains seines
gait sate
  gaits sates
gale sail
  gales sails
gale sale
  gales sales
gallery salary
  galleries salaries
galley sally 
  galleys sallies
gallows sallows
game same
gammon salmon
gammy Sammy 
gang sang
gap sap
  gaps saps
garb sahib
  garbs sahibs
gash sash
  gashes sashes
gate sate
  gated sated
  gating sating
gat sat
gaud sawed
gauze saws
gave save
gay say
gear sear
  geared seared
  gearing searing
  gears sears
geese cease 
geezer Caesar 
  geezers Caesars 	 
get set  
  gets sets
  getting setting
get-up set-up
  get-ups set-ups
ghat sort
  ghats sorts
ghee C 
Ghent cent
gift sift
  gifted sifted
  gifting sifting
  gifts sifts
gillie silly
  gillies sillies
gilt silt
gird surd
girt cert 
give sieve
  gives sieves
  giving sieving
glade sleighed
glaze slays
glaze sleighs
glide slide
  glides slides
  gliding sliding
glimmer slimmer
glow sloe
  glows sloes
glow slow
  glowed slowed
  glowing slowing
  glows slows
glow-worm slow-worm
  glow-worms slow-worms
glue slew
  glued slewed
  glues slews
  gluing slewing
glum slum
glut slut
  gluts sluts
go sew
  goes sews
  going sewing
go so
go sow
  goes sows
goad sewed
goal Seoul 
goal sole
  goals soles
goal soul
  goals souls
goalie solely
gob sob
  gobs sobs
god sod
  gods sods
gold sold
gold soled
gong song
  gongs songs
goo Sioux 
goo sou
goon soon
gopher sofa
  gophers sofas
gore soar
  goring soaring
  gored soared
  gores soars
gorse sauce
got sot
gowned sound
guide side
  guided sided
  guiding siding
  guides sides
guide sighed
guideline sideline
  guidelines sidelines
guilt silt
guise sighs
guise size
  guises sizes
guitar sitar
  guitars sitars
gully sully
  gullies sullies
gum some
gum sum
  gummed summed
  gumming summing
  gums sums
gun son
  guns sons
gun sun  
  gunned sunned
  gunning sunning
  guns suns
gunny sonny
Gurkha circa
gust sussed
guy sigh
  guyed sighed
  guying sighing
  guys sighs
guyed side
guys size
haggle hassle
  haggled hassled
  haggles hassles
  haggling hassling
jog joss
joggle jostle
  joggled jostled
  joggles jostles
  joggling jostling
lag lass
league lease
  leaguing leasing
  leagued leased
leg less
log loss
mag mass
Maggie massy
Meg mess
morgue morse 
mug muss
  mugging mussing
  mugged mussed
pig piss
  pigging pissing
piggies pisses
plague place 
  plaguing placing 
  plagued placed
plug plus
pug pus
shaggy chassis 
swig Swiss 
teg Tess 
tog toss
  togged tossed
  togging tossing
Virgo verso
wiggle whistle 
  wiggled whistled 
  wiggles whistles 
  wiggling whistling 

John Higgins, Shaftesbury, September 2010.