overlapping distribution:

When speech sounds occur in the same position in different words they are said to be in overlapping distribution

overlapping distribution Divided into two parts:

1-contrastive distribution:

When speech sounds that are in overlapping distribution cause a difference in meaning between words, they
are said to be in contrastive distribution

Example:

in English, the sounds [p] and [b] can both occur word-initially, as in the words pat and bat (minimal pairs), which
are distinct morphemes

2- Non-Contrastive Distribution:
When spoech sounds that are in overlapping distribution do not cause a difference in meaning between words,
they are said to be in non-contrastive distribution (or in free variation).

Example:

the vowel in the word laugh is pronounced /a:/ in British English and /e/ in Aimerican English. These two sounds,
however, are different English vowel phonemes as can be deduced from the minimal pair cat /kaæt/ and cart
ka:t /. Whether we pronounce the vowel in man [æ) or [a:] the meaning will remain the same. Therefore, these
dialcctical variation phonemes are no-contastivel.

Minimal Pair and Minimal set:

Minimal Pair:is a pairs of two words that have similar sounds except for a difference of one sound in the same
position.

Example:

The two words cup and cut make a minimal pair that shares the first two sounds /ka/ but differs in the last sound.
Here the two sounds /p/ and M at the end of two words are in contrastive distribution. It is understood from this

Minimal set:is a group of thrce or more words that have similar sounds except for one sound in the same
position

Example:

such as the five words (fat, cat, sat, hat, bat) that share the last two sounds but contrast in the first sound. It is
concluded from this minimal set of words that /f, k, s, h, b/ are phonemes of English. Again, the contrastive
sounds in minimal sets can be in any phonetic environment: word (or syllable) initially, medially or finally.
Another example of a minimal set is the three words (sit, set, sat) that contrast in the vowel in the middle of the
words. We conclude from this set that the three vowels /, lel, and /z/ are three distinct vowel phonemes in
English.

Complementary Distribution:

When speech sounds occur in different phonetic environment in different words but never in the same
environment they are said to be in complementary distribution and they are usually allophones of the same
phoneme

Example:

cach one of the three voiceless stops /p, t, k/ has three allophones which are in complementary distribution (i.e.
cach one of them occurs in one specific environment but never in the environment of other allophones). These
three allophones are distributed as follows: a) The aspirated allophones [p', e, k] (i.e. accoimpanied by a strong
buff of air) occur at the beginning of a stressed syllable in word as in put, top, cup, input (V), retype, uncut. b) The
non-aspirated allophones (p, t, k] occur word medially after / s/ as in spot, stop!