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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
An or a?
Should 'an' or 'a' be used for the following?
That was a/an malicious attempt.
To undergo a/an economic crisis.
In a/an isolated building.
He is a/an fearful enemy.
It is a/an universal fact.
Thanks a million!
That was a/an malicious attempt.
To undergo a/an economic crisis.
In a/an isolated building.
He is a/an fearful enemy.
It is a/an universal fact.
Thanks a million!
Top answer
That was a /an malicious attempt. To undergo a/ an economic crisis. In a/ an isolated building.
- That was a /an malicious attempt.
- To undergo a/ an economic crisis.
- In a/ an isolated building.
- He is a /an fearful enemy.
- It is a /an universal fact.
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14 Answers
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That was a/an malicious attempt.
To undergo a/an economic crisis.
In a/an isolated building.
He is a/an fearful enemy.
It is a/an universal fact.
To undergo a/an economic crisis.
In a/an isolated building.
He is a/an fearful enemy.
It is a/an universal fact.
00
I heard somewhere before that it depends on the first letter of the noun because it is describing the noun I guess that's wrong then. E.g That was an malicious attempt - 'an attempt'. To undergo a economic crisis - 'a crisis'. So we choose the article depend on the adjective? I'm confused about the last one, universal starts with a vowel so shouldn't it be 'an universal' fact? I'm really confused
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It is based on the sound, not the spelling, of the word that comes immediately after it.
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I really can't understand how to determine by the sound because I'm not a native speaker so I can't really distinguish which should sound right. Can you help me determine the difference? because e.g. both an or a universal fact sounds alright to me. Can you give more examples also please?
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Start by reading [url=http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/591/01/]THIS[/url] and [url=http://a4esl.org/q/h/9801/cg-a_an.html]THIS[/url], Jin.
The exceptions to these rules are:
Abbreviations and
The exceptions to these rules are:
Abbreviations and
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You need to separate these two issues. It doesn't matter whether the "next word" is a noun or an adjective.
He carried an umbrella.
He carried a blue umbrella.
Words beginning with "u" are the most difficult, when it comes to sound.
If the word sounds like it begins with "y," then you must use "a."
The nurse gave me a
He carried an umbrella.
He carried a blue umbrella.
Words beginning with "u" are the most difficult, when it comes to sound.
If the word sounds like it begins with "y," then you must use "a."
The nurse gave me a
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Hi,
Let just add this.
We say eg an economic crisis.
Here's the reason for this. It
Let just add this.
We say eg an economic crisis.
Here's the reason for this. It
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So did I use these right? I've randomly came up with these sentences.
It was a surreal experience.
It was a ridiculously overpriced item.
It was an extraordinary phenomenon.
It was an amazing journey.
tsm
It was a surreal experience.
It was a ridiculously overpriced item.
It was an extraordinary phenomenon.
It was an amazing journey.
tsm
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Oh and also, how do I know if I should pronounce the article 'a' as 'a' like the sound of the alphabet A or pronounce it as 'ah'?
E.g. it was A surreal experience or it was 'ah' surreal experience.
E.g. it was A surreal experience or it was 'ah' surreal experience.
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