Trap 6 of 22 · French speakers
Ship or sheep: the short I
Ship ou sheep : le i court
What French speakers do
You use the French i (tense, as in lit) everywhere, so ship sounds like sheep and live like leave.
The American rule
The short I (/ɪ/) is relaxed and quick — halfway between French i and é. Keep the long EE (/i/) for spellings like ee and ea.
English separates two vowels that French treats as one:
- /i/ — long and tense, lips spread: sheep, leave, feet. This is close to the French i.
- /ɪ/ — short and relaxed, mouth a little more open: ship, live, fit. French has no such vowel.
The short one is far more common: it, is, in, this, big, city, film, visit, minute. Relax your face, open your jaw slightly, and keep it short — it should sound a little lazy. If it feels like a French i, it is too tense.
The words
ship
/ʃɪp/
✗SHEEP
✓SHIP
“The ship leaves at six.”
live
/lɪv/
✗LEEV
✓LIV
Said with EE it becomes leave.
“Where do you live?”
sit
/sɪt/
✗SEET
✓SIT
“Please sit down.”
big
/bɪɡ/
✗BEEG
✓BIG
“That's a big decision.”
film
/fɪlm/
✗FEELM
✓FILM
“Have you seen the film?”
city
/ˈsɪti/
✗si-TÉ
✓SIT-ee
“It's a beautiful city.”
minute
/ˈmɪnɪt/
✗mi-NÜT
✓MIN-it
“Give me a minute.”
visit
/ˈvɪzɪt/
✗vi-ZEET
✓VIZ-it
“Come visit us in May.”
list
/lɪst/
✗LEEST
✓LIST
“Add it to the list.”
rich
/rɪtʃ/
✗REECH
✓RICH
“The soup is very rich.”
still
/stɪl/
✗STEEL
✓STIL
With EE it becomes steel.
“Are you still at work?”