IIRC that vowel is /e/, which is neither really /ɛ/ ('eh') nor the diphthong /eɪ/ ('ey'). And that quite neatly illustrates the problem with shoehorning other l

IIRC that vowel is /e/, which is neither really /ɛ/ ('eh') nor the diphthong /eɪ/ ('ey'). And that quite neatly illustrates the problem with shoehorning other languages into English phonology and spelling.