Pronunciation: the ə sound
Elementary to advanced level (A2-C1)

The ə sound is everywhere in English. It’s almost impossible to speak British English for more than a few seconds and not use ə! It is not a letter but many vowels can be pronounced /ə/.

/ə/ is the sound in about (/ə/bout) and ago (/ə/go). We use this sound in many small words when we speak at normal speed e.g ‘for, ‘and’, ‘from’, ‘to’ and ‘but’. It is aIso very common in longer words e.g. computer (c/ə/mput/ə/), telephone (tel/ə/phone) and photograph (phot/ə/graph). This is why it is the number one sound in English.

In the following dialogue, look for the /ə/ symbol.

A: Can I help you?
B. Could I have two pints /ə/f beer /ə/n /ə/ bag /ə/f crisps please?
A. Anything else?
B. Yes, /ə/ whisky /ə/n sod/ə/ /ə/n /ə/ packet /ə/f nuts.
A: Here you are.
B: Thanks. When do you close t/ə/night?
A: We’/ə/ op/ə/n until /ə/ quart/ə/ t/ə/ twelve.

This is how you would normally write the dialogue:

A: Can I help you?
B. Could I have two pints of beer and a bag of crisps please.
A. Anything else?
B. Yes, a whisky and soda and a packet of nuts.
A: Here you are.
B: Thanks. When do you close tonight?
A: We’re open until a quarter to twelve.

Now, try to read the dialogue quite quickly using the /ə/ sound. It is a very relaxed sound in English.