(I think) I was always taught that a word starting with a vowel or H would have AN in front of it ... "an apple" "an igloo" "an hour" and so on. It seems that most of the H words have lost the N ... was I wrong all along or has the rules changed? Is "an hearing aid" right? "an hospital" they both don't sound right but 'an hour' does.

So what is the rule?


*sheesh, when will I even learn to spell???*

I tend to use 'a' when the 'h' is spoken, as in 'house', and 'an' when the 'h' is silent, as in your example of 'hour'. There are a few exceptions though, I believe that 'hotel' and 'historian' are acceptable written either way. Normally I would use 'an hotel' and 'an historian' when written and spoken, leaving the 'h' silent. That's probably a matter of accent though, as many people would pronounce the 'h' in both cases when spoken.

good theory, Izzi, didn't think of that. I've been walking around and saying things that I see that start with H and seeing how I say them but it doesn't work when you think about it.

I typed in "indefinite article before 'h' words" and got : this

A quote from the above link:

>>>Occasionally, an is also used before words where the first syllable is unstressed (an heroic effort, an historic moment), but it is not incorrect to write a heroic effort or a historic moment.<<<

Hmm, I hadn't given it any thought before, but I'd refer to 'an historic moment' but 'a history of Britain'.

No mention of the correct usage for 'hotel' on that site. I'm not a snob, but I thought it was correct to drop the 'aitch' on that one.

I've just found this quote from the same AskOxford site:

>>>The form an for the indefinite article is used before a spoken vowel sound, regardless of how the written word is spelt. If you say 'an otel' when speaking (which is now often regarded as distinctly old-fashioned), then it may be appropriate for you to write 'an hotel'; but most people say 'hotel' with a sounded 'h', and should write 'a hotel'. By contrast, words such as 'honour', 'heir' or 'hour' in which the 'h' sound is dropped are written with 'an'. Americans who drop the 'h' in 'herb' may also prefer to write 'an herb', but in standard British pronunciation the 'h' is sounded, and 'a herb' is therefore correct in writing. Because 'European' is said with an initial 'y' sound, which counts as a consonantal sound in English speech, it is said (and written) with 'a' not 'an'. An abbreviation such as M.P., which is pronounced em pea, begins with a spoken vowel, and so it is 'an M.P.'<<<

So...I'm not a snob, just 'distinctly old-fashioned'. Ok, I admit it, I had to be dragged kicking and screaming into this century.