How to pronounce contagious

1 : transmissible by direct or indirect contact with an infected person contagious diseases contagious intestinal illness contagious skin rash contagious viruses — see also contagious disease. 2 : bearing contagion contagious people.

Some other times, “i” is pronounced as “/ih/”. It’s a “short i”. We find it it “closed syllables” that end with a consonant. A long /ai/, that we find in “open syllables” – such as when the letter “i” is followed by a consonant then a vowel, especially a silent “e”.