How do aspirated and unaspirated stops differ in Hmongic languages?

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Hmong-Mien languages Distribution of Hmong-Mien language family in China and Southeast Asia.

In Hmongic languages, stop consonants are produced by completely blocking airflow from the lungs. A key distinction among these sounds is the presence or absence of aspiration, which refers to a puff of air released during articulation.1

This contrast functions similarly to the difference between the aspirated /pʰ/ in the English word pot and the unaspirated /p/ in spot. In Hmongic languages, this feature contributes to a complex system of initial consonants where stops can also vary by voicing (vocal fold vibration) and prenasalization. At any given place of articulation, these features can combine to create a four-way contrast, such as /p/, /b/, /pʰ/, and /mp/.1