# 'a' or 'an' before an abbreviation - revisited **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 24, 2006, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703 "2006-10-24T14:12:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2006, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/21 "2006-10-24T17:40:30Z")
[QUOTE=iamthewalrus(:3=] I still see “an historic [occasion]” used, in both British and American writing. [/QUOTE] Absolutely. I’m not saying that _no_ words with a sounded “h” take “an”, simply that it’s incorrect to say that _all_ of them do in British English. “An historic” is one that you will still hear quite frequently, in fact I think most BBC newsreaders use it. The [Wikipedia article on “a and an”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%2C_an#Using_.22an.22_instead_of_.22a.22_before_a_pronounced_.22h.22) says: “Some British dialects (for example, Cockney) silence all initial “h’s” and so employ “an” all the time: e.g., “an 'elmet”.” Perhaps this is where the confusion arises. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/22 "2006-10-25T02:29:49Z")
[QUOTE=Colophon] “Some British dialects (for example, Cockney) silence all initial “h’s” and so employ “an” all the time: e.g., “an 'elmet”.” Perhaps this is where the confusion arises. [/QUOTE] I agree. Occasions where the writer wrote ‘an’ before what we consider a ‘hard h’ were probably instances where the writer’s own speech would have pronounced it with a silent or at least soft h, thereby not violating the rule. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/23 "2006-10-25T13:29:27Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] Let us know how it turns out, won’t you? [/QUOTE] OK. The team in general has now accepted the rule as we have stated it here. The gentleman in particular has acknowledged (sp) my points, but will stick with what he was taught. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/24 "2006-10-25T14:30:36Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] OK. The team in general has now accepted the rule as we have stated it here. . [/QUOTE] There is no “rule” nor (in English) any body of dudes in authority to make a “rule”. It’s (now) “usage.” In the case of an abbreviation where the ab. doesn’t start with an vowel- either “a” or “an” are used. Neither _sound_ awkward or wrong. So, it’s either “a FBI agent” _or_ “an FBI agent”. However, note that the general usage tends towards “an” only for vowels. I also lean towards “a” as “an” is something that can be phased out of the English lanaguage without any loss. _Especially_ the “h” variation. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/25 "2006-10-25T14:37:05Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] OK. The team in general has now accepted the rule as we have stated it here. The gentleman in particular has acknowledged (sp) my points, but will stick with what he was taught. [/QUOTE] Dear diary. Meant to leave house, but instead walked into cupboard this morning, stayed there for eight hours, too proud to admit my mistake. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/26 "2006-10-25T15:43:09Z")
[QUOTE=Giles] The difficulty comes, as the cited articlke says, in deciding how an abbreviation is pronounced. Is it “a URL” (pronounced “you are ell”) or “an URL” (pronounced “an earl”)? [/QUOTE] If its capitalized (URL) it’s a “you-are-ell”. If not (url), it’s an url. I use both. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/27 "2006-10-25T15:48:26Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth] There is no “rule” nor (in English) any body of dudes in authority to make a “rule”. It’s (now) “usage.” In the case of an abbreviation where the ab. doesn’t start with an vowel- either “a” or “an” are used. Neither _sound_ awkward or wrong. So, it’s either “a FBI agent” _or_ “an FBI agent”. However, note that the general usage tends towards “an” only for vowels. I also lean towards “a” as “an” is something that can be phased out of the English lanaguage without any loss. _Especially_ the “h” variation. :rolleyes: [/QUOTE] ::SHRUG:: There may be no “body of dudes in authority” but to quote the site in my OP > [@](#): > > English doesn’t really have “rules” in the sense of “decrees handed down by an official body.” Though the English language changes, as all languages do, there’s no committee to vote on what’s right or wrong. > > Does that mean “anything goes”? Of course not. Some things are (almost) universally recognized as inferior; more to the point, some shibboleths will make you look stupid before some audiences. both spelling and grammar have common usages that are commonly refered to as rules and we all understand what is meant when the word \*rule \*is used. Some nits aren’t worth picking ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2006, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703/28 "2006-10-25T16:14:34Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] ::SHRUG:: There may be no “body of dudes in authority” but to quote the site in my OP both spelling and grammar have common usages that are commonly refered to as rules and we all understand what is meant when the word \*rule \*is used. Some nits aren’t worth picking [/QUOTE] True, and if everyone- or even almost everyone does it one way, you can say “it’s a rule”. But in the case of something like this, there is no rule. Either way works. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-or-an-before-an-abbreviation-revisited/377703.md?page=1)