920 - Sunday Speak - The Schwa Sound: The Secret to Natural Speech

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One of the biggest secrets to sounding natural in English is something called the schwa sound. It’s the most common sound in American English, and it’s a huge reason why native speakers sound so smooth and relaxed when they talk.

The schwa sounds like uh – not strong or clear, just soft and lazy: uh. We use it in many unstressed syllables and small words: Like the vowel sounds in umbrella, the a in what [whut], the i in anima [AN-uh-muhl] and the a in Sofa [SO-fuh].

FAQ
Question: What is the schwa sound?
Answer: The schwa sounds like a just soft and lazy “uh.”