What is the rule for using a or an before a word, for example, is it correct to say "An homage to the movie Lord of the Rings"?

gmackematix

Strictly speaking "an" is used if the first syllable of a word beginning with "h" is unstressed so "an historic occasion" or "an homage". This use is dying out especially in American English. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%2C_an Jun 28 05, 8:15 PM

ogicu8abruok

You use "an" if the next word begins with a vowel SOUND, so "an hour" but "a horse". Jun 28 05, 8:19 PM

lanfranco

To elaborate a little, this is about the difference between the aspirated (pronounced) and non-aspirated (non-pronounced) "h." "Homage" is not a word frequently used in English, but when it is, it is generally given the French pronunciation "o-MAHGE" -- long "o," short "a," second syllable stressed. That is, the "h" is not aspirated. Another example would be "hors-d'oeuvre." Such a word, usually a foreign borrowing, is preceded by "an." An aspirated, or pronounced, "h," as in "historic," "horse," or "house," takes "a," not "an." Editor's note: also see Question #74316 http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question74316.html Jun 28 05, 8:44 PM

gmackematix

I think "an historic" is the common exception to the modern unaspirated "h" only rule. In fact I just googled "an historic", "an harassment", "an heretical" and "an hypothesis". From the first page of each I would say that "an" in the last three cases was more likely to be used in British/Commonwealth sites whereas "an historic" produced a mixture of those and American sites. Jun 28 05, 9:35 PM

answer-man

To say "An homage" is correct. The word "homage" is pronounced "AH MIJ". The "H" is silent. The rule for when to use "A" or "AN" is as follows: a + singular noun beginning with a consonant: a boy; a car; a bike; a zoo; a dog an + singular noun beginning with a vowel: an elephant; an egg; an apple; an idiot; an orphan a + singular noun beginning with a consonant sound: a user (sounds like 'yoo-zer,' i.e. begins with a consonant 'y' sound, so 'a' is used); a university; a unicycle Apr 27 07, 4:08 PM

Create a Free FunTrivia ID to add to, request more/new answers, or edit this entry

What is the rule for using A or An before a word, like is it right to say "An homage to the movie Lord of the Rings"? When is it grammatically correct to use an ampersand rather than the word 'and'? Is there an official number of exceptions to the "i before e except after c" rule? Why do people say "an honorary degree" even though honorary does not begin with a vowel? What other occasions should "an" be used before a "non-vowel" word? How many church bells are required to provide 720 combinations of rings before an additional bell is required?

1 "Lord of the Rings": One Quiz to Rule Them All This is a quiz on, in the eyes of many, the greatest work of fiction ever written. I'm new to this quiz making business, so I hope you like it and please let me know if there are any mistakes. LOTR Trilogy - Combined Tough 10 Q Shnivrelrip Mar 21 06 1845 plays 2 Which "Lord Of The Rings" Movie Was It? A quiz on one of the best movie trilogies ever made. Choose which "Lord Of The Rings" movie is being described, one question is from an extended version. Lord of the Rings . Average 10 Q Polaris101 Jan 11 04 15807 plays 3 Music of Lord of the Rings (movie) This is a general quiz on the Music from the LOTR movies...Enjoy! Lord of the Rings Average 10 Q michisichi Apr 16 04 825 plays