Ship vs Sheep – /ɪ/ vs /iː/ (German Speakers)
German speakers often pronounce both sounds like German ie / i.
English has two different sounds:
/ɪ/ = short (ship) — short, relaxed (like German "mit")
/iː/ = long (sheep) — long, tense (like German "Sie")
1. ship vs sheep
ship /ʃɪp/
[wie: Schiff – kurz]
sheep /ʃiːp/
[wie: schieb – lang]
live /lɪv/
[wie: liv – kurz]
leave /liːv/
[wie: lief – lang]
sit /sɪt/
[wie: sit – kurz]
seat /siːt/
[wie: sieh(t) – lang]
fill /fɪl/
[wie: fill – kurz]
feel /fiːl/
[wie: fiel – lang]
ship /ʃɪp/
cheap /tʃiːp/
short vs long vowel
2. Minimal pairs
bit /bɪt/
beat /biːt/
fit /fɪt/
feet /fiːt/
hit /hɪt/
heat /hiːt/
rid /rɪd/
read /riːd/
slip /slɪp/
sleep /sliːp/
chip /tʃɪp/
cheap /tʃiːp/
list /lɪst/
least /liːst/
rich /rɪtʃ/
reach /riːtʃ/
lick /lɪk/
leak /liːk/
bin /bɪn/
bean /biːn/
3. German comparison
German already has this difference:
mit vs Miete
bin vs Biene
ist vs Igel
Use the same difference in English:
ship ship ship
sheep sheep sheep
live live live
leave leave leave
sit sit sit
seat seat seat
4. Most important pairs
ship
sheep
live
leave
sit
seat
fill
feel
bit
beat
fit
feet
slip
sleep
chip
cheap
rich
reach
bin
bean