Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Grammar Girl, Grammar Girl's, QDnow, and Quick and Dirty Tips are all trademarks of Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Today's topic is "a" versus "an." DJ grammar What about before the letter X? http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=19288#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=19288#Comments Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:45:30 GMT Lisa grammar Hey Grammar Girl - I didn't see an answer to a question I also have (original post copied below). My question expands to acronyms. For example, would you say "I am going to an FMIG group" or "I am going to a FMIG group." I just found your site and love it! paul hannah Says: 11/1/2007 11:28:51 AM Just to add another twist to this topic. What is the correct us of "a" or "an" when the next word is an Acronym with a vowel sounding first letter. For instance should it be "Win a LCD TV" or "Win an LCD TV". Clearly first letter after the a/n is a consonant but the sound is "el". http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=18776#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=18776#Comments Wed, 02 Sep 2009 18:38:05 GMT John Jennings grammar Maybe I am mentally mispronouncing the word, but it only sounds right to me to write, “Let’s get an European automobile.” Yet, from all that I see, “a European” is the correct form, as in the following example from your web site: "Steve Says: 8/17/2007 8:24:53 AM I am a medical writer at a European pharmaceutical company, and I must . . " Can you enlighten me? Thanks, John Jennings http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=18017#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=18017#Comments Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:24:51 GMT Jade grammar I love this site! great site and great webmaster. Thank you bye. I am from San and know bad English, give true I wrote the following sentence: "Find cheap airline tickets and cheap flights here! Plan your vacation ahead of time to get the best out of your airline tickets." Thanks 8). Jade. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=16371#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=16371#Comments Sun, 05 Apr 2009 16:02:55 GMT Blake grammar Hello everyone. Be honorable yourself if you wish to associate with honorable people. I am from Macedonia and , too, and now am writing in English, please tell me right I wrote the following sentence: "Provides online booking services for air tickets, hotel reservations, and car rentals across indian cities." With love :D, Blake. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=16330#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=16330#Comments Thu, 02 Apr 2009 04:33:30 GMT Ross grammar This is a long past page, but perhaps someone can settle this dispute. Is "I am an RM" or "I am a RM" more accurate. I postulate that "an RM" is more accurate becuase the "R" is pronounced "are" and am contested by "a RM" is more accurate because it is a consonant. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=16114#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=16114#Comments Fri, 13 Mar 2009 19:38:37 GMT capecoralgreg grammar In business writing, I have always trusted the Gregg Reference Manual for the rule. Gregg states: In speech, both a historic occasion and an historic occasion are correct, depending on whether the h is sounded or left silent. In writing, a historic occasion is the form more commonly used. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=15987#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=15987#Comments Tue, 03 Mar 2009 17:47:48 GMT Brian grammar Interesting that you quietly but firmly present "a historic". I've always been annoyed by "an historic" because it tends to get spoken with an aspirated h. But it is appropriate when "historic" is pronounced with a silent H—which long ago was normal, and from whence the "an" convention came. I usually say "an 'istoric" because i'm a smartass that way. :) [My lowercase "i"s are a whole other story, having to do with english being an oddball in capitalising that pronoun. (I'm partial to french capitalisation conventions, and just insane enough to apply them to english.)] http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=15965#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=15965#Comments Mon, 02 Mar 2009 18:45:17 GMT Amber grammar I was recently reading a book that had "an historian" in it. I used to think it was correct but after listening to your podcast and learning that it is not because the 'h' acts as a consonant, I just had to cringe. I couldn't help but hope it was a simple matter of the writer and editors missing an error. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=15120#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=15120#Comments Tue, 09 Dec 2008 04:33:46 GMT sara grammar Could someone please settle the question of "an historic event"? Is this proper? Can you choose to say either a historic event or an? Thanks for the help http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=14627#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx?commentid=14627#Comments Thu, 06 Nov 2008 14:46:45 GMT Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:45:30 GMT http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Managing Editor) feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Webmaster) en-us