A or An? Listen to the Sound

Articles are the tiny words a, an and the. They look simple, but they trip up almost everybody. Today: a or an. And the secret is not the letter. It is the sound.

Here is the rule. Use an before a vowel sound, and a before every other sound. Say the word out loud first, then choose.

An apple, an owl, an hour. A house, a dog, a university. Look at hour and university. Hour starts with a vowel sound because the h is silent. University starts with a you sound, which is a consonant sound. Sound wins.

Remember these three. An hour, because the h is silent. A university, because it sounds like you. And an honest man, because that h is silent too. Say it, don't spell it.

Try one. I saw blank elephant and blank giraffe at the zoo. Elephant starts with a vowel sound, so an. Giraffe starts with a j sound, so a. The answer is an elephant and a giraffe.

So: choose a or an by sound, handle the tricky three, and say the rule in your own words. Go and try the quiz.