Letters Vs. Sounds: Vowel ɪ

Pronouncing vowel sounds can be challenging in a foreign language.  This is because we interpret the vowels we hear through the filter of our native language.  We hear a sound close to a vowel sound in our language, and our brain lumps it together with that known sound.  Fortunately, we can learn to override this filter and adapt it to include a different set of vowels.  But we have to know which words have the new vowel sound, and with the lack of consistent spelling in English, this is a learning process.

Let's look at the vowel sounds one sound at a time.  The best way to re-train your brain to hear these sounds is to use listening skills.  But being familiar with the variations in spelling will also help you succeed.
The sound /ɪ/; or "vowel ɪ," is challenging for many non-native English speakers.  In English, this vowel sound has at least six different ways that it is spelled, however, it is most frequently spelled with the letter i and is sometimes called "short i".  You can see examples of the sound's various spellings in the chart below.  To learn more about pronouncing this sound, you can read here.