Difference between schwa and the sound in "cup"

Jimmy   Sun Jan 10, 2010 8:07 am GMT
Hi! I have a problem with /ə/ and /ʌ/ sounds in English. I can hardly distinguish the difference between this two sounds. Like the words "cup" and "luck" sound like /cəp/ and /lək/. And, I don't know how to position my mouth in /ʌ/. Or, can I just pronounce words with /ʌ/ as /ə/.
Tom   Sun Jan 10, 2010 1:55 pm GMT
According to some phoneticians, /kəp/ and /kʌp/ are both valid transcriptions of "cup", so you probably shouldn't worry about it.
Guest   Sun Jan 10, 2010 5:54 pm GMT
I think V is used within a stressed syllable while 3 is used within unstressed syllables.
Kelly   Sun Jan 10, 2010 6:39 pm GMT
I pronounce words like JUST, LOVE, HURRY with the same sound [ə], it is definitely not the open [a] sound used by speakers of Cockney English, Australian English or Mexican immigrants.
Uriel   Sun Jan 10, 2010 6:59 pm GMT
The short U is very like a schwa; in fact, when I was in grade school, the schwa sound used to be commonly represented by "uh" (in third grade they don't subject 8-year-olds to IPA). So don't sweat it if you can't tell the difference; it's pretty slight and your pronunciation won't suffer any.
Pedro   Sun Jan 10, 2010 9:25 pm GMT
/ʌ/ in a multi-syllable word is noticeable: the apparent length of the vowel segment as compared to the schwa. Note this, it is not the vowel that gets lengthened, but the consonant just before that /ʌ/ does--if it is a stop, release it slowly; if it is a fricative, hold it longer. This creates the illusion of lengthened vowel.