# "a" vs "an" before an initialism (e.g. SDMB). Which is correct? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 26, 2020, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925 "2020-12-26T01:39:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/22 "2020-12-26T08:40:07Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Actually, the reason the distinction exists is because it is easier to say “an” before a vowel than “a.” Similar kinds of variants are found in other languages. Or even in English itself. Consider the sentence “The pasta isn’t cooked.” In American pronunciation, typically, there’s a tiny little glottal pause between the terminal “uh” in “pasta” and the initial “ih” in “isn’t.” But in many British dialects, an R-ish sound is inserted at that transition point, to separate the phonemes. “The pasta rizzn’t cooked.” They have not gone as far as to adjust the spelling, the way “a” is explicitly written as “an” in the original example that kicked off this thread. But the function of the pronunciation quirk is the same. ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/23 "2020-12-26T10:22:55Z")
When writing a SDMB post I use “SDMB” as an abbreviation rather than an acronym, and expect the reader to mentally unpack it — on an unconscious level. (Unless the reader reads the post aloud, and then I expect them to consciously say “Straight Dope Message Board.”) Personally I never use the acronym Es-De-Em-Be in conversation, so I don’t write “an SDMB” in my posts. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/24 "2020-12-26T13:25:42Z")
I think this is pretty much settled even before it was posted here but I’ll add a vote for “a” vs. “an” depending on how it’s pronounced. “An” before a word pronounced before a vowel _sound_ and “a” before a consonant _sound_. “An FBI agent…” “A FEMA employee…” > [@BigT](#): > > I switch back and forth between “a URL” and “an URL” depending on how I pronounce those letters. You pronounce that “earl” sometimes? Never heard that. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/25 "2020-12-26T13:35:36Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > You pronounce that “earl” sometimes? Never heard that. You don’t remember Weird Earls? ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/26 "2020-12-26T13:50:09Z")
I agree with using “an” but I’d be inclined to turn the sentence round to “a post on SDMB” - it just seems to flow better (style rather than “correct” grammar). ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/27 "2020-12-26T13:51:25Z")
Agree. In these situations I generally recast the sentence entirely, to avoid the uncertainty. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/28 "2020-12-26T14:03:30Z")
Another vote for ‘an’, and in general choosing based on how you say the word in your head. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/29 "2020-12-26T16:25:24Z")
It is, AFAIK, the only invariable rule in English and is entirely dependent on the pronunciation of the following word. Which is correct “A unionized …” or “An unionized…”? “A unionized worker” but “An unionized solution” As for the OP, of course you would say “An Ess Dee Em Bee” but “A straight dope message board”. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/30 "2020-12-26T18:01:23Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > I despise the “A” vs “An” especially in corner cases like words that begin with H, when in Brit Eng the H is dropped. But it’s exactly such cases that demonstrate that the rule is consistent: It depends on pronunciation, not on spelling. And the pronunciation of initial “h” can vary in different dialects. (And American and British English are mostly the same on this, although they vary in a few cases. But they also vary within each group of dialects.) It’s “a horse” in most dialects of English, except maybe in Cockney. It’s “an hour” in all dialects of English of which I am aware. (Most words with a silent initial “h” are derived from French, where “h” is silent, although in some such words the “h” is pronounced.) It’s “a herb” in British English, but “an herb” in American English, where the “h” is silent. Then we get to “historic,” which is variable in pronunciation. Almost everyone will say “a history,” since the stress is on the first syllable and the “h” is clearly pronounced. However, because “historic” is stressed on the second syllable, some people will say “an historic event” because the “h” becomes softer or disappears in this case. Either way is correct, depending on your own pronunciation. ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/31 "2020-12-26T18:33:57Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > An interesting example is the word “apron,” which was originally “napron.” But it changed from “a napron” to “an apron” as the “n” migrated to the article from the noun. Compare “napron” to the similar “napkin.” Why the n moved in one and not the other is a mystery. Other words that have changed were adder (the snake) and auger. Orange changed, too, though I’m not sure if the n was split off or the o added. Some words picked up an N from an, such as newt or nickname. An was the word for “one”. English didn’t really have definite articles at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2020, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/32 "2020-12-26T18:56:36Z")
> [@gnarator](#): > > Orange changed, too, though I’m not sure if the n was split off or the o added. Not in English. When it arrived in English via Old French/Anglo Norman it had already lost the “n.” It’s from Persian _narang_ (and earlier Indian forms); Spanish retains the “n” in _naranja_ ---
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/33 "2020-12-27T01:24:06Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Then we get to “historic,” which is variable in pronunciation. I was going to bring this up, having had to wrestle with it myself on a few occasions. I personally think the best way to go when you don’t know how the reader will pronounce the words is “a(n)”. But I also agree that for words that might be either initialisms or acronyms, you should choose the article that shows what you consider the standard pronunciation of the abbreviated form. I would, in general, not expect anything I write in one of those abbreviated forms to be pronounced spelled out in full, but I would be able to show whether it should be pronounced as an initialism or an acronym. This also reminds me of one of the World of Warcraft Classic raids which was invariably written as “BWL”, but since each phrase segment was only one syllable and the pronunciation of “W” is 3 syllables, some people maintained it should always be pronounced “Blackwing Lair” even if written “BWL”. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/34 "2020-12-27T02:20:01Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > I agree. If it were something on, say, the BBC, it would be “a”. No. UK RP behaves pretty much the same as US English. The one major difference is that an initial “h” is treated as though it’s a vowel. There are times when US English does that (e.g, “an honor”), but the British consider the “h” as a vowel far more commonly. Thus, “an historic occasion.” ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/35 "2020-12-27T02:24:22Z")
[https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general\_writing/grammar/articles\_a\_versus\_an.html](https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/grammar/articles_a_versus_an.html) ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/36 "2020-12-27T04:20:59Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > “A unionized worker” but “An unionized solution” Why? Isn’t the word “unionized” pronounced the same in both contexts? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/37 "2020-12-27T04:28:51Z")
> [@Manduck](#): > > > [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > > > “A unionized worker” but “An unionized solution” > > Why? Isn’t the word “unionized” pronounced the same in both contexts? . Took me a second, too … but the solution is not ionized, but **un** -ionized. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/38 "2020-12-27T04:44:51Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The one major difference is that an initial “h” is treated as though it’s a vowel. There are times when US English does that (e.g, “an honor”), but the British consider the “h” as a vowel far more commonly. It’s more accurate to say that the “h” is silent. Since initial “h” is always followed by a vowel sound, effectively the word is treated as beginning with a vowel. As I mentioned above, most words with silent “h” are of French origin, since “h” is silent in French. However, this varies. It is probably true that British English tends to drop the “h” more frequently than American English, and some British dialects such as Cockney always or almost always drop it. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/39 "2020-12-27T05:20:11Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > As I mentioned above, most words with silent “h” are of French origin, since “h” is silent in French Sometimes “h” is silent in French (e.g. _l’honneur_), and sometimes it is… still silent, but “aspirated” (e.g. _la harpe_). If you turned that into English, you would get _an honor_ / _a harp_. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/40 "2020-12-27T05:51:58Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > Took me a second, too … but the solution is not ionized, but **un** -ionized. Oooohh, now I get it 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925/41 "2020-12-27T13:09:29Z")
I’d been mystified too. Thanks to @bordelond for clarifying. Chemistry terminology is full of traps for the unwary. Like the time back in HS or early college when I pronounced “anion” like “onion” but with a short “a” sound on the front and “cation” like “ration” with a hard “c” = “k” sound on the front. Cue laughter from all but me. 🥴 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-vs-an-before-an-initialism-e-g-sdmb-which-is-correct/928925.md?page=3)