When to Use the Words A, An, and And

When to Use the Words A, An, and And A and an are two forms of the same word. The conjunction and is a different word altogether. Use the  indefinite articles a and an before nouns: a before a noun that begins with a consonant sound (a doctor, a horse, a university); an before a noun that begins with a vowel sound (an envelope, an hour, an umbrella).  And is a coordinating conjunction: use it to join words, phrases, and clauses. Examples Every minute felt like an hour, and every hour felt like a day.Love is not a feeling. Love is an action, an activity. (M. Scott Peck)For lunch, she had an apple, a carrot, and a European oyster.Betty is an honorary member of the Lollipop League.Shyla and I were sitting at a table with an energetic clown and a rowdy little girl. Usage Notes on When to Use A or  An A HistorianPeople worry about whether the correct article is a or an with historian, historic, and a few other words. Most authorities have supported a over an. The traditional rule is that if the h- is sounded, then a is the proper form. . . . This is not a new rule. Even the venerated language authority H.W. Fowler, in the England of 1926, advocated a before historic(al) and humble. (Bryan A. Garner, a. A. Choice Between a or an. Garners Modern American Usage.  Oxford University Press, 2003)A and An Before AbbreviationsA minor complication arises with some abbreviations. Do you write, He received a M.A. degree or an M.A. degree? Do you write, a N.Y. Central spokesman or an N.Y. Central spokesman? The test is how people say or read such designations. M.A. registers with most people as alphabetical letters, not as Master of Arts; hence, an M.A. degree is proper. On the other hand, N.Y. Central is instantly translated by the mind into New York Central; it would not be read as En Wye Central. Therefore, a N.Y. Central spokesman is proper. (Theodore M. Bernstein, The Careful Writer: A Modern Guide to English Usage, Simon Schuster, 1965) Practice Exercise Fill in each blank with either a, an, or and. (a) Writing is just having ______ sheet of paper, ______ pen, ______ not a shadow of ______ idea what you are going to say.(b) ______ good coach is ______ understanding tyrant ______ a hard-headed friend. Answers to Practice Exercises: A, An, And (a) Writing is just having  a  sheet of paper,  a  pen,  and  not a shadow of  an  idea what you are going to say.(b)  A  good coach is  an  understanding tyrant  and  a hard-headed friend.