I tot the usage of 'an' will base on A, E, I, O, U of the following word!
Same goes to me. I dont know such thing as missing 'H'... Ha... this is language..
'an' HDB flat or 'a' HDB flat.
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Same goes to me. I dont know such thing as missing 'H'... Ha... this is language..
technically it should be i, I, e, æ, a, ɐ, ɔ, o, ʊ, ə, not A, E, I, O, and U... like previously mentioned, its a sound thing, not a grammar or spelling thing...The 'A, E, I, O, U' thing I thought shld be known to all?
if looked at from the point of view of sounds, there is no real need for exceptions... even for something like "union" which seems to require an exception, we can look at the word's sound to tell us what is required... taking a transcription (into an aural representation) of the word rather than its spelling, the word "union" may be transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as "juniən", and it can be seen, refering to the list above, that it requires an "a' instead of an "an"... doesn't mean everyone should learn IPA, but this is just to illustrate that it is a sound thing and not a spelling thing... use and trust your ear to tell
You are right, but it also applies when the word sounds like it begins with an A,E,I,O or U.I tot the usage of 'an' will base on A, E, I, O, U of the following word!
great. My formal English education stopped after I completed my secondary school education. It's been a while..if people who use "a" with "house" and those who use "an" with " 'ouse" learnt it and applied it thus, then good for them, they have correct usage... I think the problem would come if people used "an" with "house" or "a" with " 'ouse"... that would be when the "guidelines" are clearly broken... but the choice to use a certain pronunciation system should certainly be open to the individual as long as they are consistent...
this is an issue of incomplete competence of English, not the influence of Singlish... and in a way, I believe this situation arises because of the extra emphasis on technical (not meaning "engineering" technical but as in "expertise-centric" technical) and scientific education but a limited emphasis on language skills that is present in the education system... honestly, I do not remember much about learning English in school (not to put down the efforts of teachers of English... I guess I just wasn't a particularly attentive student in English class)... I learnt English the good old fashion way, by listening and using it, and what better source of good English language usage than well made television and well written novels if good English language use is not present at home (I come from a family that converses in Hokkien so that runs true for me, although my father does speak good English)... that's where I had picked up my English
shiver on... more funding for academic research
"an" is correct... You use "an" if the next word starts with a vowel SOUND, not necessarily letter...
So "H" is "ech" in sound, you use "an" in this case...
Ditto with an S-class Mercedes, since you pronouce it as "es" or an F-18 fighter jet coz you say it with "ef"....
So "H" is "ech" in sound, you use "an" in this case...
Ditto with an S-class Mercedes, since you pronouce it as "es" or an F-18 fighter jet coz you say it with "ef"....
mine too... don't ask me about parts of speech and all that sort of rubbish :embrass:... I prefer to study society
the thing about pronunciations is that its not about absolutes, its about differentiation... and as long as what a person produces can be interpreted correctly that is good enough... would a person get confused if a person uses "heitch" instead of "eitch" or vice versa? probably not... so live and let live
Hetch is really funny for me hehe... but it's a localization thing... it's technically wrong but as long as it is understood, who cares... .
Kinda like Zi, Zed, in HK some folks say "izet" hehe... was listening to a travel agent talking to a westerner one time in HK (he was using speakerphone) and he was trying to spell his name (his name is Bonzen), Bee, Oh, En, Izet, Yi, En...
I think the American guy was confused for about 10mins trying to get his name... I just told the guy "say Zi, not izet") hehe.
If you look up any dictionary, whether Collins, Oxford or Webster's, thus covering both the UK and US usage... you will find that the pronunciation key of the letter 'H' is: \ˈāch\ (or similar).
If you pronounce the letter 'H' as 'haitch', then it's quite simply a mistake. It's a very common pronunciation error, so there is no shame it it.
'An' is used before the phonetic equivalent of 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' and 'u'... and not necessary the letters 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' and 'u' themselves.
Therefore, 'an HDB' is correct.
Don't get started on Irish-English, Scottish-English, Indian-English, Singlish or any other pronunciation. You can choose to use the language in any way you please. I use Singlish all the time and completely ignore the rules... but that does not mean that it is the correct use of English.
If you pronounce the letter 'H' as 'haitch', then it's quite simply a mistake. It's a very common pronunciation error, so there is no shame it it.
'An' is used before the phonetic equivalent of 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' and 'u'... and not necessary the letters 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' and 'u' themselves.
Therefore, 'an HDB' is correct.
Don't get started on Irish-English, Scottish-English, Indian-English, Singlish or any other pronunciation. You can choose to use the language in any way you please. I use Singlish all the time and completely ignore the rules... but that does not mean that it is the correct use of English.
to say that it is an error is being overly picky (or, in academic circles, what is called overly prescriptivist
)... can call it regional colour maybe... as long as no misunderstanding would result, having variations in pronunciation shouldn't be a problem... 
Assuming most of us have figured this out, so here's a pop quiz ...
'A' mp3 player or 'an' mp3 player?
'A' mp3 player or 'an' mp3 player?
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