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Anonymous Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

Need for adjective "an" with acronym MRI

Does this sentence require the adjective "an" before "MRI" or would it be grammatically correct without?

Recipients of MRI were three times as likely to remain on disability for a prolonged period of time.

Thanks for your insights.
  

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9 Answers
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Although you would write "Recipients of magnetic resonance imaging" and "Recipients of a magnetic resonance imaging scan," the acronym MRI has come to mean the latter and is spoken as "EmAreEye." So use "an."
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AnonymousDoes this sentence require the adjective "an" before "MRI"
Not to my ear.
Anonymouswould it be grammatically correct without?
In my opinion it would.

CJ
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deadratuse "an."
I understand MRI as a unique method of medical testing. So, I think that the determiner "an" is redundant here.
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Magnetic resonance imaging isn't a unique method of testing. It's one of several scanning techniques. Do you mean that it's a term for a general method of testing? If so, I agree with you, and I wouldn't use an article in front of the phrase "magnetic resonance imaging," but people say "I got an MRI" because of the attraction of the vowel in pronouncing "em," and because they got a parti
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deadratMagnetic resonance imaging isn't a unique method of testing. It's one of several scanning techniques. Do you mean that it's a term for a general method of testing? If so, I agree with you, and I wouldn't use an article in front of the phrase "magnetic resonance imaging," but people say "I got an MRI" because of the attraction of the vowel in pronouncing "em," and b
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Most people I know refer to getting "an MRI" to mean they are getting the test that uses MRI technology.

While Jim's ear doesn't find it odd to omit the "an" mine does.
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BarbaraPAan MRI
Yes, I myself have gotten an MRI, but "Recipients of MRI" sounds different to me. I'd compare it with "Recipients of radiation therapy". In other words it seems acceptable to me to treat "MRI" as uncountable in that context. But even if I were to treat it as countable, I wouldn't use "an MRI"; I'd say "Recipients of MRIs".

N
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Good point. I agree with what you're written. And I agree too that "MRIs" would be the way I'd say it too.
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Considering that this is an "ENGLISH FORUM" then the question is actually incorrect.

MRI is an "Abbreviation" and NOT an "Acronym"

An acronym spells something else like N.A.T.O or H.O.U.N.D etc.

I hear it all the time from people trying to sound clever but the funniest part of this is that I was originally corrected by a German! :-)

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