A question of sound, not sight: Indefinite articles

Would you say “an NHL referee” or “a NHL referee”? It's “an NHL referee”. The indefinite article an is used before all vowel sounds except the long u sound (a united stand) and before the silent h (an honourable politician). And since the first letter of NHL makes the vowel sound en, it takes the article an.

Here are some questions to test your knowledge.

1. UFO (unidentified flying object) incident

a

an

2. FM (frequency modulation)

a

an

3. home theatre

a

an

4. EU (European Union) Commission announcement

a

an

5. GST (goods and services tax) penalty

a

an

6. IMF (International Monetary Fund) report

a

an

7. undercover agent

a

an

8. recidivist

a

an

9. MBA (Master of Business Administration) student

a

an

10. Havana beach

a

an

  

Note: Adapted from Charles Skeete's article "A Question of Sound, Not Sight" in Terminology Update, Vol. 29, No. 3, 1996, p. 14.