“A” or “An”

Writers sometimes confuse the use of the articles “a” and “an”. We were all
taught that “a” precedes a word starting with a consonant and that “an”
precedes a word starting with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y).

Here’s the secret to making the rule work: The rule applies to the sound of
the letter beginning the word, not just the letter itself. The way we say the
word will determine whether or not we use “a” or “an”. If the word begins
with a vowel sound, you must use “an”. If it begins with a consonant sound,
you must use “a”.

For example, the word hour begins with the consonant “h”. But the “h” is
silent, so the word has a vowel sound. Hence: an hour

The rule works the other way as well. Take the word university. It begins
with the vowel “u”. But the “u” is pronounced as if it begins with the
consonant “y”. Hence: a university

Another vowel with a consonant sound is “o”. When spoken, the letter can
sound as if it begins with the consonant “w”. Thus, we use the “a”: a one-
room apartment / a once-famous actor

Articles with Acronyms, a or an?

Finally, the rule applies to acronyms as well. If you pronounce a letter as a

letter and it begins with a vowel sound, you should precede it with “an”. The
consonants with vowel sounds include f, h, l, m, n, r, s, and x.

Examples:

- An X-ray of the chest had to be taken twice that night.

- He fired an M-1 missile.

 - He attended an FDA hearing. (FDA = Food and Drug Administration)

By the same token, if a vowel letter, with a consonant sound, is pronounced

as a letter, you should use “a”.

Examples:

- He made a U-turn.

Fill in the gaps with the correct article (a, an, or the) where necessary. Put
a hyphen (-) if you think that no article is needed.

1. _____ “hustle and bustle” of modern life makes it very stressful.

2. What’s _____ capital of your country?

3. _____ headmaster earns more than _____ teacher.

4. Do you know who invented _____ computer?

5. Have you seen _____ newspaper? I can’t find it anywhere.

6. Is this _____ first time you’ve stayed at _____ Hilton?

7. Is _____ Nile or _____ Amazon _____ longest river on _____ earth ?

8. Several million visitors _____ year are attracted to _____ ski slopes of _____
Alps.

9. I’ll meet you outside _____ post office. I’ll be there in _____ quarter of _____
hour.

10. _____ young people tend to think that _____ life was more difficult in the
past.

11. In my opinion, _____ education should be free.

12. _____ education I got at _____ school was excellent.

13. In some cities, _____ cars have been banned from _____ centre.

14. I went to _____ Buckingham Palace today. It was great.

15. I took _____ train to London and then _____ underground to _____ Victoria
Station. It’s _____ short walk from there.

16. Would you like to come with us to see _____ film at _____ cinema
tomorrow?

17. I had _____ bad experience at work today.

18. The fleeing car sped past at 100 miles _____ hour. (i.e., per hour)

19. _____ Mount Everest is _____ highest mountain in _____ world.

20. _____ Middle East is one of _____ world’s hot spots.

21. We lived in _____ Netherlands before moving here.

22. If you ever go to London, you must see _____ Tower of London and _____
Tate Gallery.

23. We noticed _____ strong smell coming from _____ refrigerator.

24. She lives in _____ England, which is part of _____ UK.

25. After his wife’s death, he left _____ home and joined _____ army.

26. He should have called me _____ hour ago; I hope everything is fine!

27. They visited their grandmother in _____ hospital.

28. _____ history is an interesting subject, but what I like most is _____ history
of _____ United States.

29. The Browns often watch _____ television in the evening.

30. Munich lies in _____ south of Germany.

Key

Fill in the gaps with the correct article (a, an, or the) where necessary. Put
a hyphen (-) if you think that no article is needed.

1. The “hustle and bustle” of modern life makes it very stressful.

2. What’s the capital of your country?

3. A headmaster earns more than a teacher.

4. Do you know who invented the computer?

5. Have you seen the newspaper? I can’t find it anywhere.

6. Is this the first time you’ve stayed at the Hilton ?

7. Is the Nile or the Amazon the longest river on - earth ?

8. Several million visitors a year are attracted to the ski slopes of the Alps.

9. I’ll meet you outside the post office. I’ll be there in a quarter of an hour.

10. - young people tend to think that - life was more difficult in the past.

11. In my opinion, - education should be free.

12. The education I got at - school was excellent.

13. In some cities, - cars have been banned from the centre.

14. I went to - Buckingham Palace today. It was great.

15. I took the train to London and then the underground to - Victoria Station.
It’s a short walk from there.

16. Would you like to come with us to see a film at the cinema tomorrow?

17. I had a bad experience at work today.

18. The fleeing car sped past at 100 miles an hour. (i.e., per hour)
19. - Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

20. The Middle East is one of the world’s hot spots.

21. We lived in the Netherlands before moving here.

22. If you ever go to London, you must see the Tower of London and - Tate
Gallery.

23. We noticed a strong smell coming from the refrigerator.

24. She lives in - England, which is part of the UK.

25. After his wife’s death, he left - home and joined the army.

26. He should have called me an hour ago; I hope everything is fine!

27. They visited their grandmother in the hospital.

28. - history is an interesting subject, but what I like most is the history of the
United States.

29. The Browns often watch - television in the evening.

30. Munich lies in the south of Germany.