When do you use "a" or "an" before a noun?

Question

When speaking about a single item the article "a" or "an" is used before a noun.

I saw _______tiger at the zoo.

Do you want _______ ice cream?

I have _________ apple for my snack.

I would like _______ spoon to eat my pudding.

Answer 1

Actually, you do NOT decide whether to use an "a" or an "an" before word based on the FIRST LETTER of that word. INSTEAD, you decide based on the FIRST SOUND of the word. If the first sound of the word is a vowel sound, then use "an" in front of it.

For example, we say "a unicorn" because the first sound in "unicorn" is "y" even though the word starts with a vowel ("u").

Answer 2

Whether to use "a" or "an" before a noun is dependent on the sound of the proceeding word. "A' is used for all consonant sounds. "An" is used for vowel sounds (ay, ee, eye, oh, you). Be careful though! Just because a word STARTS with a vowel does not mean that it is phonetically pronounced as a vowel. For example, the word 'unicorn' starts with the vowel U; however, it is PRONOUNCED as a consonant sound. For this reason, we would say "A unicorn...." not "An unicorn...."

Answer 3

"a" is used when it will precede a consonant

"an" is used when it will precede a vowel

I saw ___a____tiger at the zoo.

Do you want ____an__ ice cream?

I have ___an______ apple for my snack.

I would like ___a____ spoon to eat my pudding.

Answer 4

If a noun begins with a vowel sound the article "an" precedes it. Ex. an apple, an ice cream.

If a noun begins with a consonant sound, the article "a" precedes it. Ex. a tiger, a spoon.