The length and quality of the vowels are different, and these are very significant in English but not in Spanish.
/ɪ/ vs. /iː/
| Short /ɪ/ | Long /iː/ |
|---|---|
| ship | sheep |
| bit | beat |
| live | leave |
| sit | seat |
| fill | feel |
| lid | lead |
| slip | sleep |
| grin | green |
| pick | peak |
| chick | cheek |
/æ/ vs. /ɑː/
| /æ/ (as in “cat”) | /ɑː/ (as in “cart”) |
|---|---|
| cat | cart |
| bat | bar |
| hat | heart |
| mat | mart |
| pat | part |
| cap | carp |
| tap | tarp |
| back | bark |
| sack | sock |
| lack | lark |
/ʌ/ vs. /ɑ/
| /ʌ/ (as in “cut”) | /ɑ/ (as in “cot”) |
|---|---|
| cut | cot |
| luck | lock |
| duck | dock |
| shut | shot |
| cup | cop |
| mud | mod |
| bud | bod |
| nut | knot |
| suck | sock |
| rut | rot |