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Subject:Re: a vs. an From:Dick Margulis <margulis -at- fiam -dot- net> To:Iain Harrison <iain -at- hairydog -dot- co -dot- uk> Date:Thu, 09 Mar 2000 17:30:43 -0500
Iain Harrison wrote:
>
> > The {old fuddy-duddy|Purist|pedantic} (choose one) rule is that if the
> > word has more than three syllables, _an_ is the correct choice.
>
> Let's try that one for size:
>
> An proclivity? Nope
> A egg? Nope
>
> I rather think it depends on whether the first letter sound is a vowel,
> and bears no relation to the length of the word.
>
> ;-)
>
Aw, c'mon, Iain. I was referring only to a rule for deciding whether to
use a or an before a word that begins with a so-called silent h, not to
a general rule for all words. Sorry for the elision. In any case, it is
not a rule that any modern style guide concurs with.
