CHAPTER 54

The Schwa

The schwa, which is given as the symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), was introduced

into English barely one hundred years ago. It comes from a Hebrew word meaning “no vowel,” and was
first used to indicate those instances where the vowel was not clearly defined but sounded vaguely like
uh.

(^) Probably the most commonly used example of ante is the A.M. abbreviation we use to indicate the time
before noon. It means ante meridian. This is the only time that the prefix is separated from the rest of the
word.
Somewhere in the middle of the 20th century, the humble schwa became immensely popular, and
people who ought to have known better began to sprinkle it everywhere. Lazy lexicographers and careless
editors stuck in a schwa wherever they thought it would fit. Needless to say, spelling, diction, and correct
pronunciation suffered and have continued to suffer.
Because it has been so greatly overused, everybody should look upon the schwa with deep suspicion.
There are countless examples in dictionaries and text books where the author has used a schwa when
anybody who cared to pronounce the word correctly would see that it was not necessary. This infatuation
with the schwa is merely a form of phonic laziness.
It cannot be denied that the schwa has its place. The endings tion and sion are usually schwas, as are
most of the le endings and many of the er endings, but there are enough legitimate schwa sounds without
phonic laziness producing more. Since poor pronunciation leads inevitably to poor spelling, both the
teacher and the student should sound a word out carefully before deciding whether or not it contains a
schwa.