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Consonants /k/ versus /ʃ/, 230 pairs     

The /k/ sound is spelled with <c> or <k> initially, and <ck> or <ke> medially or finally, but note the unusal <qu> in quay. The /ʃ/ sound is normally spelled <sh>, and sometimes <ch> especially in words of French origin such as champagne or cloche.

The contrast is between a velar stop and an alveolar fricative, both voiceless. It causes no problems.

Interesting pairs include:

broker brochure
callow shallow
campaign champagne
caucus cautious
colder shoulder
coward showered
speckle special

Taboo word pairs include: cunt/shunt and kit/shit.

The mean density value is 1.7%. The list makes 129 semantic distinctions, a loading of 56%.

 
aback abash
back bash
  backed bashed
  backing bashing
balk borsch
book bush
  booked bushed
bookie bushy
bookies bushes
broker brochure 
  brokers brochures 
cabby shabby
cackle shackle
  cackled shackled
  cackles shackles
  cackling shackling
cad shad
cake shake
  cakes shakes
  caking shaking
call shawl
  calls shawls
callow shallow
cam sham
  cams shams
came shame
campaign champagne
  campaigns champagnes
candy shandy
  candies shandies
can't shan't
cape shape
  capes shapes
card shard
  cards shards
care share
  cared shared
  cares shares
  caring sharing
carp sharp
  carps sharps
Carron Sharon
car shah
  cars shahs
cat shat
caucus cautious
caught short
cause shores
cave shave
  caved shaved
  caves shaves
  caving shaving
caw Shaw
caw shore
  cawed shored
  caws shores
checker Cheshire 
clack clash
  clacked clashed
  clacking clashing
clock cloche 
Co show
coal shoal
  coaled shoaled
  coaling shoaling
  coals shoals
cock cosh
  cocked coshed
  cocking coshing  
cock shock
  cocking shocking  
  cocks shocks	  
  cocked shocked
cocker shocker
  cockers shockers
cod shod
code showed
colder shoulder
con shone
cone shown
coo shoe
  cooing shoeing
  coos shoes
cook shook
cookie cushy
coot chute 
  coots chutes 
coot shoot 
  coots shoots 
cop shop
  copping shopping
  cops shops   
  copped shopped
copper shopper
  coppers shoppers
Copt shopped
core Shaw
core shore
  cores shores
  coring shoring
corn Sean 
corn shorn
cot shot
  cots shots 
cotton Shotton 
could should
  couldn't shouldn't
court short
  courted shorted
  courting shorting
  courts shorts
courtly shortly
coward showered
cower shower
  cowering showering
  cowers showers
  cowered showered
crack crash
  cracked crashed
  cracking crashing
crake cr�che 
crank shrank
crew shrew
  crews shrews
  crewed shrewd
crimp shrimp
  crimped shrimped
  crimping shrimping
  crimps shrimps
croquet crochet 
crowd shroud
  crowded shrouded
  crowding shrouding
  crowds shrouds
crude shrewd
  crudely shrewdly	
  cruder shrewder
  crudest shrewdest
cunning shunning
cunt shunt
  cunts shunts
curly Shirley 
curt shirt
cut shut
  cuts shuts
  cutting shutting
cutter shutter
  cutters shutters
Dick dish
dickeys dishes
Dicky dishy
flak flash
fleck flesh
hack hash
  hacked hashed
  hacking hashing
hark harsh
kail shale
Kerry sherry
key she
keys she's
killing shilling
  killings shillings
kine shine	 
kip ship
  kipped shipped
  kipping shipping
  kips ships
kipper shipper
  kippers shippers
kirk shirk
  kirks shirks
kissed schist  
kit shit
  kitted shitted
knack gnash 
knock nosh
  knocked noshed
  knocking noshing
K's chaise
lack lash
  lacked lashed
  lacking lashing
lackeys lashes
leak leash
leek leash
luck lush
mac mash
mark marsh
muck mush
mucky mushy
  muckier mushier
  muckiest mushiest
parka pasha
  parkas pashas
pluck plush
plucky plushy
  pluckier plushier
  pluckiest plushiest
pock posh
pocked poshed
public publish	 
quay she
rack rash
relic relish
relict relished
ruck rush
  rucked rushed
  rucking rushing
sack sash
shook shush
slack slash
  slacked slashed
  slacking slashing
smack smash
  smacked smashed
  smacking smashing
smacker smasher
  smackers smashers
speckle special 
  speckles specials 
stack stash
  stacked stashed
  stacking stashing
track trash
  tracked trashed
  tracking trashing
whelk Welsh 
wick wish
wrack rash

Credit: John Higgins