Schwa Deletion
When unstressed vowels disappear
What is it?
In natural speech, unstressed schwa vowels [ə] are often dropped entirely, reducing the number of syllables in a word.
comfortable
→
/kʌmfərtəbəl/
→
[kʌmftərbl̩]
"Comfortable" (4 syllables) becomes "comf-ter-bl" (3 syllables) in casual speech.
When does it happen?
Schwa deletion is common when:
- The schwa is in an unstressed syllable
- The surrounding consonants can be pronounced together
- Speaking at normal or fast speed
**Key:** This makes English words shorter than their spelling suggests. "chocolate" is 2 syllables [ˈtʃɔklət], not 3.
Examples
Common reductions
| Word | Spelled syllables | Spoken syllables |
|---|
| comfortable | com-for-ta-ble (4) | comf-ter-bl (3) |
| chocolate | choc-o-late (3) | choc-lit (2) |
| family | fam-i-ly (3) | fam-ly (2) |
| vegetable | veg-e-ta-ble (4) | vej-tə-bl (3) |
| camera | cam-e-ra (3) | cam-ra (2) |
More examples
Related rules
- Syllabic L — L forming its own syllable (bottle, little)
- Syllabic N — N forming its own syllable (garden, sudden)