The schwa sound: exercises
The schwa /ə/ is a short, relaxed “uh”, and it is the most common vowel sound in English. It appears only in unstressed syllables and any vowel letter can spell it: the A in “about”, the E in “taken”, the I in “pencil”, the O in “lemon”, the U in “supply”.
Say the words with a weak syllable
Press Listen, then Say it. Green means the word was understood.
- about/əˈbaʊt/
- banana/bəˈnænə/
- problem/ˈprɑbləm/
- support/səˈpɔrt/
- today/təˈdeɪ/
- family/ˈfæməli/
- computer/kəmˈpjutɚ/
- tomorrow/təˈmɑˌroʊ/
- photograph/ˈfoʊtəˌɡræf/
- police/pəˈlis/
- a cup of tea
- fish and chips/fɪʃ ənd tʃɪps/
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How to make it
Relax everything. The mouth is slightly open, the tongue lies in the middle, the lips are not rounded or spread. Make the shortest “uh” you can. If you have to move your mouth for it, it is too strong.
Exercise 1: one letter, five spellings
| Word | Sounds like | Spelling | |
|---|---|---|---|
| about | /əˈbaʊt/ | A → schwa | |
| taken | /ˈteɪkən/ | E → schwa | |
| pencil | /ˈpɛnsəl/ | I → schwa | |
| lemon | /ˈlɛmən/ | O → schwa | |
| supply | /səˈplaɪ/ | U → schwa | |
| famous | /ˈfeɪməs/ | OU → schwa |
Exercise 2: stressed against unstressed
Say each pair. The same letters are a full vowel when stressed and a schwa when not.
| Full vowel | Schwa |
|---|---|
| man | postman |
| land | England |
| object (noun) | object (verb) |
| photograph (the first O is full) | photography (the first O is a schwa) |
| can (stressed: “Yes, I can”) | can (in “I can go”) |
Exercise 3: grammar words
In sentences, small words lose their vowel too. “To”, “for”, “of”, “and”, “a”, “the”, “can”, “was” are almost always said with a schwa: “a cup uh tea”, “fish un chips”, “I kun do it”. Saying them with full vowels is the main reason careful learner speech sounds robotic.
Questions people ask
Is the schwa always spelled with the same letter?
No. Any vowel letter and many combinations can represent it. Stress decides, not spelling.
Can a schwa be stressed?
By definition, no. The stressed vowel in “cup” is a different, stronger sound, /ʌ/.
Do I have to use it?
For good rhythm, yes. English timing depends on weak syllables being short. Full vowels everywhere make speech harder to follow, not clearer.
Related
- Word stressWhich syllable to stress: eight rules that cover most words.
- Connected speech and linkingWhy “what do you want” sounds like “whaddaya want”: five linking rules.
- Intonation and rhythmFalling, rising and fall-rise tones, sentence stress, and exercises for each.
- IPA sounds chartEvery vowel and consonant of English with its symbol, example words and audio.