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Funny English. Break into English. Grammar and Style. A or An. Use an in place of a when it precedes a vowel sound, not just a vowel. That means it's “an honor” (the h is silent), but “a UFO” (because it's pronounced yoo eff oh). Most of the confusion with a or an arises from acronyms and other abbreviations: some people think it's wrong to use an in front of an abbreviation like “MRI” because “an” can only go before vowels.

Not so: the sound, not the letter, is what matters. Because you pronounce it “em ar eye,” it's “an MRI.” One tricky case comes up from time to time: is it “a historic occasion” or “an historic occasion”? Some speakers favor the latter — more British than American speakers, but you'll find them in both places — using an on longish words (three or more syllables) beginning with h, where the first syllable isn't accented.

The Above, The Following. Many kinds of writing, especially in business and law, use a lot of lists, and it's common to introduce those lists with the following and to refer back to them by the above. Alot. R À Z. SPEAK SPEAK.

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