A or An Exercises
Practise a vs an with 20 free questions and instant answers. Covers vowel sounds, silent h, acronyms and tricky words like university and hour. A1-A2.
How this works
The rule everybody learns is that "a" goes before consonants and "an" goes before vowels. That rule is almost right, and the words it gets wrong are the ones that are actually tested.
The real rule is about SOUND, not spelling. Use "an" when the next word begins with a vowel sound, and "a" when it begins with a consonant sound. Say the word aloud and listen to the first noise your mouth makes.
That resolves every difficult case at once. "Hour" is spelled with an h and pronounced "our", so it starts with a vowel sound: an hour. So do honest, honour and heir. Meanwhile "university" is spelled with a u and pronounced "yoo-niversity", so it starts with a consonant sound: a university. So do useful, uniform, European and one ("a one-way street" - the w sound).
Acronyms follow the same test on the name of the letter. An MBA, because M is said "em". An hour, an FIR, an NGO, an X-ray, an SMS. But a UPI payment, because U is said "yoo".
One last thing worth knowing: the adjective decides, not the noun. It is "an old phone" but "a new phone", and "an honest man" but "a good man" - because "an" is answering whatever word comes next, whatever that word is.
Why this trips up Indian English speakers
The a/an split is the one article rule Indian English speakers usually get right, and there is a small, consistent set of words where it still slips.
The first is the silent h. "A hour", "a honest opinion" and "a honour" are common in speech because the spelling says consonant and the eye is faster than the ear. All three take "an".
The second runs the other way, with the "yoo" words. "An university", "an unique opportunity" and "an useful tool" appear constantly in written English from India - and this time the eye sees a vowel where the mouth makes a consonant. All three take "a".
The third is acronyms, which matter because so much professional speech is full of them. "A MBA", "a NGO", "a SMS" and "a FIR" are all wrong: the letters M, N, S and F are said "em", "en", "ess" and "eff", so all four take "an". But "a UPI transaction" and "a UID" are right, because U is said "yoo".
Say the word out loud before you choose. The ear is correct here and the spelling is not.
20 questions
All 20 questions are below, with the rule explained above. Turn on JavaScript to work through them one at a time and check each answer as you go.
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The interview will take about _____ hour.
Say the word aloud. What sound does it start with?
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She is studying at _____ university in Pune.
It is spelled with a vowel but not pronounced with one.
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He has _____ MBA from a college in Bangalore.
How do you say the letter M out loud?
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That was _____ honest answer, and I respect it.
Another silent h.
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We stayed in _____ hotel near the airport.
This h is not silent.
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This is _____ useful tool for anyone learning English.
Listen to the first sound, not the first letter.
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I got _____ SMS from the bank this morning.
The letter S is said "ess".
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She made _____ UPI payment instead of using cash.
How do you say the letter U?
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It is _____ old laptop, but it still works perfectly.
The article answers the adjective, not the noun.
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Take _____ umbrella, it looks like rain.
This u is a real vowel sound.
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She waited for _____ before the doctor called her in.
Silent h, and watch the spelling of the noun.
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He works for _____ NGO that supports rural schools.
N is said "en".
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They live on _____ one-way street behind the market.
"One" does not start with the sound you might expect.
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Is this _____ European company or an Indian one?
Say "European" out loud.
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Fix this sentence: I have a appointment with an manager at four.
_____
Both articles are the wrong way round.
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She gave _____ excellent presentation to the client.
The adjective comes first.
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He is _____ engineer at a startup in Hyderabad.
A straightforward vowel sound.
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Arrange the words into a correct sentence.
_____
Subject, verb, article, adjective, noun.
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Fix this sentence: He filed a FIR at the police station yesterday.
_____
How is the first letter pronounced?
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We need _____ unique approach, not _____ obvious one.
Two blanks, and they take different articles.
Now say it out loud
Getting it right in a gap is not the same as getting it right while you are talking. That is the gap this whole site exists to close, and it takes sixty seconds.
Describe three things on your desk right now, using a or an with each one. Then describe three qualifications you have or want, using an MBA, an engineering degree or similar.
Common questions
Is it "a hour" or "an hour"?
"An hour". The h in hour is silent, so the word begins with the vowel sound "ow". The same applies to honest, honour, heir and honourable. Compare "a hotel" and "a hospital", where the h is pronounced and the word begins with a consonant sound.
Is it "a university" or "an university"?
"A university". Although it is spelled with a u, it is pronounced "yoo-niversity", and "yoo" is a consonant sound. The same applies to a useful tool, a unique chance, a uniform, a European country and a one-way street.
Which article do acronyms take?
Whichever matches how you say the first letter. M, N, S, F, L, R and X are all said with a leading vowel sound, so they take "an": an MBA, an NGO, an SMS, an FIR, an X-ray. U and most other letters take "a": a UPI payment, a BTech, a CV.