In a number of English words the schwa can be deleted. The schwa follows a stressed vowel and is word-medial. The process is known as medial posttonic schwa syncope.
The schwa can be deleted in the following words:
average
camera
chocolate
definitely
family
interesting
listening
opera
separate
temperature
Notice that the optional schwa is immediately preceded by a stressed vowel.Schwa deletion is possible in imaginative but not in imagination. In imaginative the schwa is posttonic, but in imagination it is pretonic.
Schwa deletion never occurs word-initially. It is not possible in words such as about and ago. It doesn't occur word-finally, either. Words such as era and sofa never undergo schwa deletion.
Not all medial posttonic schwas can be deleted. For example, schwa deletion is not possible in colony or company. The reason is that schwa deletion does not occur between a liquid and an alveolar nasal or between consonant clusters.
Medial posttonic schwas are often deleted in English. This is a variable rule. Schwa deletion is more common in casual speech than in formal.
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