schwa

[ shwah ]

nounPhonetics.

the mid-central, neutral vowel sound typically occurring in unstressed syllables in English, however spelled, as the sound of a in alone and sofa, of e in system, of i in easily, of o in gallop, and of u in circus.
the phonetic symbol ə, used to represent this sound.

Origin of schwa

First recorded in 1890–95; from German, from Hebrew shəwā, literally, “nothingness, emptiness, vanity,” and the name of a diacritic marking schwa or no vowel

Sometimes shwa .

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for schwa

schwa

shwa

/ (ʃwɑː) /

noun

a central vowel represented in the International Phonetic Alphabet by (ə). The sound occurs in unstressed syllables in English, as in around, mother, and sofa
the symbol (ə) used to represent this sound

Origin of schwa

C19: via German from Hebrew shewā, a diacritic indicating lack of a vowel sound

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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