d vs t

Voiced Alveolar Stop vs Voiceless Alveolar Stop

How these sounds differ

Voiced Alveolar Stop

Voicing: voiced
Place: alveolar
Manner: stop
Class: consonant
In languages: 217 / 500

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Voiceless Alveolar Stop

Voicing: voiceless
Place: alveolar
Manner: stop
Class: consonant
In languages: 308 / 500

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Cross-linguistic distribution

217

Languages with d

190

Languages with both

308

Languages with t

190 languages in our database contrast both sounds as distinct phonemes. Languages that have one but not the other tend to merge them into a single phoneme — meaning speakers of those languages often struggle to hear the distinction when learning a language that contrasts them.

Has d, not t (20)

KLAMATH Language isolate Persian Indo-European Aghem Atlantic-Congo AHTNA Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit ALAMBLAK Sepik Avar Nakh-Daghestanian CHEROKEE Iroquoian DYIRBAL Pama-Nyungan IVATAN Austronesian Lak Nakh-Daghestanian Garo Sino-Tibetan Adzera Austronesian Gadsup Nuclear Trans New Guinea Kwakiutl Wakashan Tunica Language isolate Wapishana Arawakan Angas Afro-Asiatic Ga Atlantic-Congo IRISH Indo-European English (New Zealand) Indo-European

Has t, not d (20)

Chacobo Pano-Tacanan SIERRA MIWOK Miwok-Costanoan Luvale Atlantic-Congo IWAM Sepik Maasai Nilotic MAXAKALI Nuclear-Macro-Je Guambiano Barbacoan Min Dong Chinese Sino-Tibetan Central Arrernte Pama-Nyungan Karok Language isolate Navaho Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit FASU Language isolate Mixtec Otomanguean Aleut Eskimo-Aleut Mazahua Otomanguean Totonac Totonacan Apinaye Nuclear-Macro-Je Maung Iwaidjan Proper Awiya Afro-Asiatic DIYARI Pama-Nyungan