Conference thebay::joyoflex

    
    (Not a definitive answer, but I think I'm right...)
    
    With abbreviations of this form, you should use `a' or `an' based
    on the way that the first letter sounds or is spelled:
    
    		a DMA	  -  A DEE em ay
    		an OSI	  -  AN OH ess iy
    
    		but...
    
    		an RSC    -  AN AR ess see
    		a ULA	  -  A YOO ell ay
    
    (with apologies for the bad phonetics, and lack of regard to the
     meanings of the abbreviations!)
    
    The main exception to this is when the abbreviation or acronym has
    a generally accepted pronunciation.  For example, RAM isn't said
    as "ar ay em", but as "ram".  Hence, you should say "a RAM" rather
    than "an RAM".
    
    There are also exceptions when the abbreviation is expanded when
    read out (eg. if ULA was usually read as "Uncommitted Logic Array"
    rather than "yoo ell ay").
    
    Mat.
    *:o)
    

    Re: .1
    
    I agree:
    
       An RSC - Are Ess Sea (I forget your example)
    
    but I think
    
       A RSC - RiSC would also be correct.  The article usage must be
    dependent on the pronunciation of the acronym.
    
    Denise

    	The a/an distinction in *spoken* English is for ease of
    pronunciation, so one should obviously say "an RSC". Equally, the
    notion of a consonant is that of a pedantic English teacher, so
    you should write "a RSC".
    
    Similarly you should say "a UBA" but write "an UBA", unless you
    are quoting speech, maybe, or maybe not.

    re .1: Gee, I thought ULA stood for "upper layer architecture" ...
    
    len.
    

    RE: .1,.2
    
    Wotcha...
    
    It seems you can pull a tentative "descriptive *rule*" out of all
    this. If the pronunciation of the following acronym begins with
    a plosive/stop/fricative/approximant (ie. b/d/g/p/t/k/n/m/sh/tsh/r ....) 
    then the article is usually pronounced /�/, whereas if the following 
    acronym begins with a vowel.. then the article is usually pronounced
    /�n/. As .2 said (I think...) there is some justification for this
    in speech production terms.... 
    
    Coz... If the acronym begins with a stop/plosive (etc), then it is simpler
    physiologically to move from a low vowel position (ie. tongue down
    at bottom of mouth) /�/ up to the point of closure, than it is to
    position from one point of closure to another. Lots of changes in
    air pressure along the vocal tract leads to accentuated (good word
    that) boundaries in speech. This may explain why plosive pairs are
    usually found around syllable boundaries... since they naturally
    force a break in the flow.
    
    Similarly, when the tongue is positioned centrally after producing
    the nasal /n/, then the path to a following vowel is smooth, whatever
    the necessary tongue position.
    
    Oh, glides (ie. /y/) seem to barf up this cunning plan! Still
    it was worth a go....
    
    cheers,
    
    /ritshv:d/

    
    re .3 (I think)
    
    Although `a' should normally be used before a consonant when writing,
    it is (to me at least!) a lot easier to read `an RCA' than `a RCA',
    whether reading out loud or not.
    
    Since I usually try to write in a way that I find easy to read (but
    unfortunately don't always succeed!), I ignore the vowel/consonant
    rule when writing abbreviations.
    
    I have a feeling that the Oxford Guide to English Usage has a similar
    approach, but my copy's at home...
    
    I think this is another one of those cases where different schools
    of thought have opposing views, and neither is definitively correct.
    I certainly wouldn't pick anyone up on either variant, unless they
    were obviously wrong by any standard (eg. "an TPU editor").
    
    Of course, I wouldn't pick anyone up on such a thing anyway... 
    would I?
    
    Mat.
    *:o)
    
    PS  re .5:  Look what happens when you let a linguist into the
        conference! :-)
     

    Re: .5
    
    The entire import of note .5 disappeared because the author used
    some special character that shows up only as a blob on my VT100.
    
    How do I read "/blob/" and "/blob n/"? Let's think about those whizzy
    terminal features when conveying information critical to a message. 

    Is the issue here really whether one "expands" an acronym when reading
    it?  I would no more say "a are-see-aye" than I would "an Radio
    Corporation of America".
    
    len.
    

    
    re .-1
    
    Yes.  This is basically what I am saying - simply because an
    abbreviation/acronym begins with a consonant doesn't mean that it
    should be treated in the same way as a word that begins with a
    consonant.
    
    Mat.
    *:o)
    

    Re: .3
    
    'RSC' does begin with a vowel.  That is, 'R' itself begins with a
    vowel.  That is, R is spelled 'are' (or some such), not 'r.'
    
    Bee-ee-are-en-eye-ee               

    This subject is also discussed in JOKUR::Grammar topic 102.
    
    Press KP7 to enter that conference into your notebook.

    I write "an LAVC" instead of "a LAVC" because: one, I pronounce
    the acronym a letter at a time rather than "lav-see;" two, I try
    to put across a subliminal message about which pronunciation I would
    like to popularize.
    
  --Simon
    

    So, Bernhard Shaw was right, the English language is not only 
    incomprehensible1 but confusing on top of it!
    
    Harward says "writing aRCA" pronouncing "an RCA"
    
    and I bet there are again 200 different opinions on this!
    Thank's anyway, for what ever I write I could not be more wrong
    (or should I say wronger?) than anyone of your natives, Bingo.
    Rudi.
    

    
    re .6
    
    Just for the record, I meant "The Oxford Guide to the English
    Language", and not "The Oxford Guide to English Usage" (although
    that book may indeed exist).
    
    Mat.
    *:o)
    

    Now that we've worked over the abbreviation business about six 
    different ways, how about the article preceeding 'h' words...is
    it 'a historic occasion' or 'an historic occasion'?  I've heard
    it both ways.
    
    Roy
    
   

>< Note 574.16 by DSSDEV::STONE "Roy" >
>                             -< A history lesson. >-
>
>    Now that we've worked over the abbreviation business about six 
>    different ways, how about the article preceeding 'h' words...is
>    it 'a historic occasion' or 'an historic occasion'?  I've heard
>    it both ways.
>    
>    Roy
    
  I agree, Roy; there's something afoot here.  I want to say "...an 
historic occasion"  _and_ "...a history lesson".  Do you suppose the
following word (_occasion_ and _lesson_  ) has some effect on the choice
of article? 
	You may want to check out the GRAMMAR conference, note 60 and its
replies.
	Dave

    Could it be that the "his" syllable is differently accented in the
    two words?
    
    	his to'ri cal
    	his' to ry
    
    -dave

    
    It used to be the practice to use `a' before a word beginning with
    H, if the stress was on the first syllable:
    
    		a house, a hippy(!), a history book
    
    and to use `an' if the first syllable was unstressed:
    
    		an historic occasion, an hotel.
    
    In this second case, the H would be dropped in pronunciation.
    
    However, this usage has largely been superseded by the use of `a'
    universally.  Again, I am more or less quoting from "The Oxford
    Guide to the English Language", a book which I would recommend to
    anybody.
    
    Mat.
    *:o)
    

    Hi Mathew...
    
    We get onto slippery ground here... The use of /a/ vs /an/ depends
    very much upon the particular ideolect of the speaker. For example,
    in many areas of the country it is common to 'drop yer aitches'
    (a la G.B.Shaw...), so removing any remnants of a fricative sound.
    This is most common around London, and throughout the north of England
    (where I was dragged up...). 
    
    Anyways, in these cases the typed 'h' is often replaced by a glottal
    stop (as in "bu'er" for "butter") in non-stressed environments,
    and even in some stressed ones (like Basingstoke...???); if you
    pronounce it as such, then /a/ would be most common pronunciation
    (if my cunning plan from an earlier reply actually stands up). If,
    on the other hand, like lots of other folks, you simply replace
    the 'h' with a transition to the following vowel in speech, then
    /an/ would be most common (as in "occurring more", rather than in
    " ... as muck").
    
    That wee book of yours, although rather floppy and battered, seems
    to help fuel at least this note, so it must be worth a snort at!
    
    Cheers,
    
    Richard...

    .1 and .2 are right, while .3 is wrong.  Pronunciation is all.
    
    It is an hono[u]r to correct a moderator.
    (Notice that this example also proves that .19 is wrong.)
    
    "An hysteric" or "a hysteric" depends on the writer's dialect,
    i.e. whether the writer pronounces the "h" or not.