# When was the indefinite article "an" removed from the English language? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 25, 2005, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057 "2005-07-25T15:12:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![sundog66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@sundog66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sundog66)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/41 "2005-07-27T01:46:29Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > Seriously, it seems that lately, particularly in spoken English, the indefinite article “an” has just about disappeared from everyday usage. According to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage (1994), bolding mine: > [@](#): > > Occasionally, and more often in some dialects than others, _a_ is used in speech before words beginning with a vowel sound. The Dictionary of American Regional English reports this to be frequent in the United States; **the evidence suggests that it may have been somewhat more common in the past** It could be that it’s becoming more common again, as you perceive, but on the other hand, casual perceptions on these kinds of matters are often inaccurate. And regarding the “a(n) historical” variability, the same volume offers: > [@](#): > > Before _h_ in an unstressed or weakly stressed syllable, _a_ and _an_ are both used in writing […] but _an_ is more usual in speech, whether the _h_ is pronounced or not. This variation is the result of historical development; in unstressed and weakly stressed syllables, _h_ was formerly not pronounced in many words where it is pronounced at the present time […] It goes on, but that’s probably enough. Very interesting stuff… ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/42 "2005-07-27T03:47:05Z")
Thanks for the info, **sundog**. To be honest, i often find Merriam-Webster to be excessively descriptivist in its grammar and usage. I prefer Bryan Garner’s _Dictionary of Modern American Usage_ because Garner, in my opinion, adopts a very judicious balance in his work, avoiding the sort of excessive prescriptivism that can be so annoying and elitist, while refusing to descend into an unproductive descriptivism that makes every piece of grammar or usage as good as any other. Garner is willing to be prescriptive when it matters, arguing that certain usages, no matter their popularity, are simply incorrect. I realise that where one stands on issues like this largely depends on one’s own beliefs about the nature of language and the importance (or motherwise) of certain forms and conventions, but i find that i agree with Garner on most controversial issues. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/43 "2005-07-27T04:16:58Z")
The rule of: “an” before “h” words is there only because Brits drop their H’s. However, in general, “an” is a living fossil. There is no real need for it, and it screws English up. Would meaning be less clear if we dropped it? ---
**Author:** ![sundog66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@sundog66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sundog66)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/44 "2005-07-27T04:55:33Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > Thanks for the info, **sundog**. No problem. > [@](#): > > To be honest, i often find Merriam-Webster to be excessively descriptivist in its grammar and usage. Yes, it is mostly descriptive, but I thought all we wanted was a description. After all, the speculation in your OP is a descriptive one, namely that the use of _a_ before a vowel is increasing. > [@](#): > > Garner is willing to be prescriptive when it matters, arguing that certain usages, no matter their popularity, are simply incorrect. What possible grounds could there be for arguing that popular usage is incorrect? Actually, that’s a rhetorical question, because I’m familiar with the usual arguments, and I don’t find them convincing. If anyone’s interested, here’s a link to an excellent paper that deconstructs the arguments typically used by prescriptivists to justify their prescriptions: [Pullum, Geoffrey K. 2004. Ideology, Power, and Linguistic Theory. [warning: pdf]](http://people.ucsc.edu/~pullum/MLA_2004_2up.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/45 "2005-07-27T15:41:11Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > However, in general, “an” is a living fossil. There is no real need for it, and it screws English up. Would meaning be less clear if we dropped it? Meaning would not be less clear, but (IMO) we’d all sound a lound dumber. Beside, an is useful. Say the following phrases out loud: “I bought a apple and a orange at a enormous store.” In contrast, “I bought an apple and an orage at an enourmous store.” Which one sounds better, AND is actually easier to say? The second one, because vowels make us stop when we speak if they are not followed by a consonant before another vowel. Consonants allow fluid movement between vowel sounds. ---
**Author:** ![harmless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/2acd7d/32.png) [@harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmless)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/46 "2005-07-27T16:05:07Z")
From what I can tell from various message boards “an” can be replaced with either ‘a’ or ‘and’. :dubious: From **bouv** ’s post: > [@](#): > > “I bought a apple and a orange at a enormous store.” > > In contrast, > > “I bought an apple and an orage at an enourmous store.” Becomes: > [@](#): > > “I bought _and_ apple and _a_ orange at _and_ enourmous store.” :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/47 "2005-07-27T17:49:42Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > The rule of: “an” before “h” words is there only because Brits drop their H’s. Not really. First, it is not true that “Brits drop their H’s.” It is true that there are several British dialects in which an initial H is more frequently omitted. However, many British dialects continue to aspirate their initial Hs quite nicely. In fact, there are several words (_herb_, for example) where Brits speak the initial H while Yanks do not. And, of course, there are several American dialects in which an initial H is not aspirated if the accent falls on the second syllable. The constant wrangling over the pronunciation of (h)istorical being a prominent example. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/48 "2005-07-27T18:07:24Z")
I’ve noticed an increase in the misuse of “a” and “an” lately as well. And… **Liberal** made me laugh with the unicorn riff. If it is an uninformed unicorn, use western unicorn…okay, I’ll stop. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2005, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/49 "2005-07-28T02:01:36Z")
> [@bouv](#): > > Which one sounds better, AND is actually easier to say? The second one, because vowels make us stop when we speak if they are not followed by a consonant before another vowel. Consonants allow fluid movement between vowel sounds. To pontificate a bit, because dammit, if I can’t use my degree in the real world I’m gonna use it here 😃 , the glottal stop, which is that pause you not-quite-hear in ‘a apple’ and ‘uh oh’, is considered a consonant in many languages. It follows all the rules other consonants do, and is considered a distinct phoneme (a ‘letter’ of speech). It’s sort of the same in English. While it’s highly limited and not considered a phoneme, it is consistent with at least one rule: a consonant must be placed between two separate vowels. If there’s no consonant, insert a stop. Try saying ‘a apple’ or ‘a igloo’ without the stop; the words run right into each other and it’s much, much harder to decipher than with the stop. ‘An apple’, on the other hand, already has a consonant between the a and the apple, and therefore there’s no need for a stop. It flows naturally. Really, I think that if the article ‘an’ becomes disused, it won’t matter too much. As the stop would be replacing the n, it won’t impede communication. Granted, it’ll sound weird to us adults, but children will learn to hear and speak English that way, and it’ll be more or less natural to them. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2005, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/50 "2005-07-28T10:22:08Z")
I like the glottal stops in some British English dialects. Like “shu’ up!” It sounds endearing. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2005, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/51 "2005-07-28T17:10:39Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > Did the person have an accent of any type? I have a friend whose first language is German and I noticed he will often do this? You’d think with the numerous article in German (der, die, das, den, dem, ein, eine, einem, einen) that getting a grasp on just 3 of them would be no problem. Of course, the uses of the various ones in German are based on the case of the subject and its gender, whereas English is based on how it sounds. Still… ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2005, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057/52 "2005-07-29T05:22:23Z")
> [@bouv](#): > > Meaning would not be less clear, but (IMO) we’d all sound a lound dumber. Beside, an is useful. Say the following phrases out loud: > > “I bought a apple and a orange at a enormous store.” > > In contrast, > > “I bought an apple and an orage at an enourmous store.” > > Which one sounds better, AND is actually easier to say? . How about “I bought one apple and one orange at this enourmous store”? :rolleyes: Sure 'an" is a bit easier to say in your rather convoluted example- but then again "she sells seashells by the seashore " is extremely hard to say but is still proper English. “An” should join the Dodo, and take “whom” with it. :mad: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-was-the-indefinite-article-an-removed-from-the-english-language/314057.md?page=2)