schwa

The schwa is an unstressed vowel that, when spoken, resembles a weaker version of the vowel /uh/. It is the first vowel that occurs in the word above. The schwa is represented as an upside-down, backwards "e": ə. The schwa is cued as a side-down movement, but is a shorter, quicker movement that the full vowel /ʌŭuhʌŭuhʌŭuh/.