# pronunciation of "a" in "a university; a walnut; a hotel"



## Little_LIS

I want to know the difference in the pronunciation,if there is any,of "A" as the first letter and as an article.

When I searched,I found that one is stressed and the other is unstressed.
Actually,I didn't get it!

Thanks in advance


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## Wobby

'A' as the first letter of the alphabet (at least for me in UK English) is pronounced like the diphthong 'ei', so it rhymes with 'day', 'bay' and 'hay', whereas 'a' as an article is pronounced more like a schwa (like an 'uh' sound), like the start of the word 'about'. Sorry, I'm not very good at describing it... 

Actually, I'm not sure if that was your question? Were you meaning the difference between 'a' in isolation as an article and 'a' at the beginning of a word? In which case, the 'a' as an article is not slurred into the beginning of the next word, as it would do if it were at the start of the word (like in 'about').


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## Orange Blossom

The article 'a' may also be pronounced to rhyme with 'way'.  I have done so, and I have heard others do so.  I don't know the usage rules of when one pronunciation is preferred over the other, but here are some hints:

A bird just landed on my hand.

If A is pronounced like the schwa, then the emphasis is on the bird.  The implication is that I wasn't expecting a bird to land on my hand.

If A is pronounced to rhyme with may in the sentence, then the implication is that I was expecting more than one bird to land on my hand.

Orange Blossom


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## Little_LIS

Thanks,Wooby and Orange

But,Iam still confused a little bit:$

So,when I want to make stress on a certain word, it will be pronounced as schwa,and when no stress is needed, it will be pronounced as "may",right ??


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## Orange Blossom

Emphasis in my post is not quite the same as stress.  In both versions, bird still retains stress. That said, in the A rhymes with may version the article and bird have about equal stress.  The real difference in my examples is in the intended implication which changes based on the pronunciation of the article.

Again, I do not know the rules of when we use one pronunciation over the other.  It may be akin to the different pronunciation patterns of *the*.

Orange Blossom


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## Davidvs91

Like Orange Blossom, I also pronounce the article 'a' as either rhyming with 'day' or 'uh'. However, I tend to use only 'ei' at the beginning of a sentence while I would use either in the middle of one.


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## Little_LIS

Thanks,David.

So,I came to a conclusion which is,we can pronounce it in 2 ways, and no rules can be applied to it.

Right ?


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## Davidvs91

Correct. I am not aware of any rules which would apply to it.


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## Loob

Dr.Susy said:


> So,when I want to make stress on a certain word, it will be pronounced as schwa,and when no stress is needed, it will be pronounced as "may",right ??


Hi Dr.Susy.

It's actually the other way round: when the indefinite article "a" is unstressed, it's pronounced schwa, when it's stressed it's pronounced to rhyme with "may".

I think the best rule of thumb - certainly for BrE - is 'pronounce the indefinite artice "a" as schwa'.

We very rarely use the stressed "rhymes-with-may" pronunciation in BrE, and we do so only where some sort of contrast is implied: "he wasn't *a* man, he was *the* man".  

("The" in that sentence would also have its stressed pronunciation, which rhymes with "see".)


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## Scalloper

Myselft, I'd pronounce the indefinite article with [a], as in "hat" when emphasising it. Even in these circumstances, pronouncing it to rhyme with "may" would seem a little "over the top".


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## Rover_KE

I'm agreeing with Scalloper on this one, and I'm surprised there were so many posts on this thread before somebody mentioned the third way of pronouncing *a *(as in _hat)._

_Rover_


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## Orange Blossom

In the cases when *a* is pronounced to rhyme like *may, *there is an effect on meaning.

Here is another example.

I had a sandwich for supper.

If *a* is pronounced like the schwa, then the statement simply identifies what I had for the meal.

If, on the other hand, *a* is pronounced to rhyme with *may*, the implication was that I only had one sandwich.  I wanted to eat much more than that.

While there are not prescriptive rules that I am aware of, there are descriptive rules.  Whether these have been identified and written down is another matter.  I certainly haven't seen them.

Orange Blossom


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## Loob

Rover_KE said:


> I'm agreeing with Scalloper on this one, and I'm surprised there were so many posts on this thread before somebody mentioned the third way of pronouncing *a *(as in _hat)._
> 
> _Rover_


Interesting: I don't think I ever pronounce the indefinite article "a" with the vowel sound of "hat".  For me it's either schwa or (rarely) _-ay_ as in _may._

The stressed "a"-as-in-hat must be a feature of particular varieties of English.  Scalloper is (I believe) Irish {sorry if I've got that wrong, S}.  Where are you from, Rover?


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## Rover_KE

Loob said:


> Where are you from, Rover?


 
Lancashire, Loob.

Rover
x


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## Scalloper

Loob said:


> Scalloper is (I believe) Irish {sorry if I've got that wrong, S}.


 
No, Northumberland. I'd be surprised if this were a regionally specific thing, though.


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## mickey0

Hello,
 a friend of mine insists to say that in some context or situation the article "a" it can/must pronounced like as you were spelling the letter "a".
It's not clear when I must do it!
Any helps?


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## Niblib

You mean rather than saying "aye" you say "a"?


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## entangledbank

When you are emphasizing it: 'That is _a_ possibility, but not the _only_ one.' Then it's pronounced [ei], like the name of the letter.


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## mickey0

entangledbank said:


> When you are emphasizing it: 'That is _a_ possibility, but not the _only_ one.' Then it's pronounced [ei], like the name of the letter.


exactly that. But what exact am I emphasing with I say [ei] ?


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## entangledbank

You would emphasize for contrast, as in my earlier example. Or: 'I met someone called Bill Gates the other day. Not _the_ Bill Gates, but _a_ Bill Gates.' In both example, 'a' means one of several, and contrast with a definite different one.


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## Rover_KE

I've always assumed that Dickens expects us to use a long _a_ in that memorable speech from _Oliver Twist_, when Mr. Brownlow tells Mr Bumble that "the law supposes that your wife acts under your direction". 

Mr. Bumble replies "If the law supposes that, then the law is a _[sic]_ ass—a idiot. If that’s the eye of the law, the law is a bachelor; and the worst I wish the law is that his eye may be opened by experience—by experience."

It's very difficult to use the short _a_ in that context, which is why the line is usually misquoted, using _an._

Rover


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## susanna76

Hello everyone,

I was teaching two toddlers English today, and was showing them various fruit and nuts, holding each up and naming them, e.g. "an apple," "a pear." When I came to "a walnut" I didn't know how to pronounce the "a." I first pronounced the "a" as the "a" in "an." Then felt it should be "a" as in "acorn."

How would you have pronounced it? And are both pronunciations correct? Which one is more common in BrE/AmE? I know AmE uses "a" as in "acorn" many time. Is this true of BrE as well?

Thanks a lot.

P.S. Same questions for "a university" and "a hotel."


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## e2efour

In BE it is pronounced like the last a in _vanill*a* _or as in *a*bove. It is only pronounced as in *a*corn when the person is hesitating or not sure of the next word.


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## Barque

Thanks Susanna76 and e2efour. This is something I've always wanted to know but never got around to finding out about.


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## ewie

The indefinite article _a_ should _*always*_ be pronounced as a schwa (as described by E2E4).  Only sloppy tv 'reporters' habitually pronounce it as [ei].

Sorry: this is a bugbear of mine.


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## JulianStuart

I agree with ewie for the mostest part.  I think in all normal circumstances the sound is short and very schwa.  

In very rare circumstances, perhaps where someone is very slowly and carefully enunciating a sentence, one_ might_ say it as the letter a.  

I think I might feel a little odd when saying 
"This ............. is .............. uh ..........pear".

Probably because has become a word in isolation and not part of its normal place in a sentence?  Also, when describing the word - "I can't quite read this - is it an a (not uh) or an e?"  These are indeed very rare.


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## entangledbank

'A' is also pronounced [ei] when it's accented for contrast:

John: Have you seen my favourite walnut?
Mary: Here's your stupid walnut.
John: That's _a_ [ei] walnut, but not the one I was looking for.


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## cuchuflete

ewie said:


> The indefinite article _a_ should _*always*_ be pronounced as a schwa (as described by E2E4).  Only sloppy tv 'reporters' habitually pronounce it as [ei].
> 
> Sorry: this is a bugbear of mine.



Dear Doctor Bugbear,

You've been detected wearing a prescriptivist cloak and feathered hat.  Despite that
incriminating evidence, I agree with you.  Many of my compatriots do not, and trade their schwas for turbocharged eys from time to time.  That sounds funny to me, but doesn't seem to bother those who do it.


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## Andygc

ewie said:


> The indefinite article _a_ should _*always*_ be pronounced as a schwa (as described by E2E4).  Only sloppy tv 'reporters' habitually pronounce it as [ei].
> 
> Sorry: this is a bugbear of mine.


Definitely a Northern English bugbear. The [ei] pronunciation is quite common south of the Watford Gap. You might say "a castle" up north, but down south its ei caastle (sorry, I don't know how to write those phonetic thingies or which one to use)

Incidentally, I still say _an 'otel_ - with the short "a"


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## Loob

Andygc's post 8 mystifies me; I understand ewie's post 4; I pronounce the indefinite article "a" as [ei] in the circumstances described by etb in post 6.


EDIT: post 27 in the merged thread.


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## ewie

entangledbank said:


> 'A' is also pronounced [ei] when it's accented for contrast:
> 
> John: Have you seen my favourite walnut?
> Mary: Here's your stupid walnut.
> John: That's _a_ [ei] walnut, but not the one I was looking for.


 That would be enough to set my Northern Prescriptivist Teeth firmly on edge, Mr.Bank, whether you were from Watford, Warrington, Washington (Tyne & Wear), or Washington (DC).
The word is [ə].  If you want to emphasize it, you just _emphasize_ it, you don't need to change it into a word that it is not, any more than you need to say [eɪbaʊt] or (Bugbear 1a) [ði:].​


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## preppie

Now I'm really curious.  I pronounce that little letter as UH or EI (as in neighbor and weigh) depending n my mood, the word succeeding, or whether I've had enough coffee to make a difference.  Isn't it really just a matter of personal preference (for the most part) and some exceptions (whatever they are) that just seem to demand an EI ?

(NOTE: I'm really not being sarcastic .. )


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## Scalloper

can i just throw [a] into the mix?


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## panjandrum

No surprise that this topic has come up before.
...
Pronunciation:  a and the

Threads have been merged, apart from that one - which is about long and short vowel sounds in a and the.


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## natkretep

panjandrum said:


> No surprise that this topic has come up before.



Perhaps a moderator can merge them? I'd like to hear more about the vowel of <hat> used for 'a'. It came up in one of the older threads, but I don't think it's there was a clear conclusion about who used it. I think some Northern English speakers said they used it. Is that correct?


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## mplsray

ewie said:


> The indefinite article _a_ should _*always*_ be pronounced as a schwa (as described by E2E4).  Only sloppy tv 'reporters' habitually pronounce it as [ei].
> 
> Sorry: this is a bugbear of mine.



Your use of "sloppy" in reference to the /eI/ pronunciation strikes me as quite odd, since from a phonetic point of view, it takes _more_ effort to pronounce that diphthong than it does to pronounce a simple schwa.


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## Andygc

Loob said:


> Andygc's post 8 mystifies me; I understand ewie's post 4; I pronounce the indefinite article "a" as [ei] in the circumstances described by etb in post 6.


Sorry, but I'm not sure how to describe pronunciation in a way that others will understand. That attempt clearly failed.

My point was that up north the _a _in "a" and the _a _in "castle" or "bath" or "path" is always a short one. In many parts of the south, the _a_ in "a" is often long (the ay of hay) and goes with the long _a_ of castle, bath etc which is the _aahh_ of "open your mouth and say aahh". I wouldn't expect somebody who uses the long _castle _to use the short _a _with it.

Are you any less mystified?


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## Loob

Andygc said:


> Are you any less mystified?


Not really, Andy.

This southerner has different vowel sounds in _cat _and_ castle_. But I pronounce the indefinite article "a" differently from either sound. I say schwa for the indefinite article - the sound in the first syllable of _above. _

Are you suggesting that some southern accents routinely have schwa for the indefinite article in "a cat", but the vowel sound of _hay_ for the the indefinite article in "a castle"?

If so, I haven't come across that....


natkretep said:


> I'd like to hear more about the vowel of <hat> used for 'a'.


Me too - Scalloper? Rover? Anyone?


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## Scalloper

Usually, the vowel I'd use would be a schwa. The circumstance of using the [a] vowel would be where the word is stressed:

"Would you like [ə] cake ....  I said [*a*] cake!"


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## ewie

mplsray said:


> Your use of "sloppy" in reference to the /eI/ pronunciation strikes me as quite odd, since from a phonetic point of view, it takes _more_ effort to pronounce that diphthong than it does to pronounce a simple schwa.


I didn't mean pronunciationally sloppy, MP, more 'sloppy in that they're in the bad habit of imitating _other_ tv reporters whose_ every_ other _word_ has to be _emphasized _to the point of _annihilation_'.  Eventually you end up with tv news reporters (newsreaders etc.) who always pronounce _a_ as [ei] ... which just sounds absurd.
I'm not exaggerating here, by the way: this is rife in UK tv so-called journalism.

I'd also like to make it plain that I'm not saying that the phenomenon doesn't exist outside tv reporting in the UK ~ it does, and it does very widely.


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## Andygc

Loob said:


> Are you suggesting that some southern accents routinely have schwa for the indefinite article in "a cat", but the vowel sound of _hay_ for the the indefinite article in "a castle"?


No, I'm suggesting that a lot of people in southern England use the ay as in hay sound all the time (or most of the time) when they say "a". From ewie's post no 40, it looks like he/she has also heard that.


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## Noel Oderfla

I.e. "I want *a *friend".

Is the article "a" pronunced like when you go to the doctor and with your mouth wide open say "Aaaaaaa" or like when you say the alphabet "*A, *b, c, etc.."?


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## Tazzler

That's not a preposition, but an article .  It has two main pronunciations: the schwa (like the "a" in "America") and the long "e" (like the "a" in "made"). The IPA transcriptions are "ə" and "eɪ" respectively. The first is unstressed, the second stressed.


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## Noel Oderfla

What a horrible mistake  I didn't realize it. Thanks Tazzler.
So both, "ə" and "eɪ" are correct. When I watch movies I hear "ə" almost always. But in "Two and a Half Men" I hear "eɪ". (What made me ask this question). The use of one or another is due to the accents?


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## ewie

I've added your thread to a previous one on the same subject, Noel ~ plenty more answers above

~ewie, moderator


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## ewie

ewie said:


> I've added your thread to a previous one on the same subject, Noel ~ plenty more answers above
> 
> ~ewie, moderator


Here's a summary: Pronunciation of the indefinite article _a_

*Unstressed: *always pronounced /ə/ (the vowel sound in _about_)
*Stressed:* either /ə/ or /eI/ (occasionally /a/).
*HOWEVER:* you will hear people pronouncing even the unstressed article as /eI/ (the vowel sound in _pay_).  This is surprisingly common.


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