Scientific papers tend to contain lots of abbreviations—acronyms, initialisms,* gene symbols and protein designations, element and isotope symbols, chemical formulas, and so on—and authors sometimes have difficulty choosing the correct indefinite article (“a” or “an”) to use with abbreviations.
Damian, Hi, Damian. Required fields are marked *. Some abbreviations are pronounced as words by some people and letter-by-letter by others; SNP (for single nucleotide polymorphism) is an example, and you’ll find both “a” and “an” used in the literature: Here we report the results of an SNP [pronounced “s-n-p”] survey of 21 maize loci. However, the indefinite article an is still encountered before the h in both British and American English, particularly with historical: in the Oxford English Corpus around a quarter of examples of historical are preceded with an rather than a, These Foreign Words And Phrases Are Now Used In English. Jul 18 2005 06:45:05. khoff; You might want to note that there are sometimes options. It depends.
Here’s what the style guides say: Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage says that “a” is used before consonant SOUNDS, not just consonants.
Words like historic, with a pronounced "H," can use either a or an. Your email address will not be published. [email protected]. Acronyms are rarely preceded by a or an, except when used adjectivally, says the Chicago Manual of Style. HIPAA (pronounced "hippa") begins with a consonant sound, so a HIPAA form is correct. You are right in thinking it should be "an FOB". Some of the most famous people in the world don’t use the rules properly. A good example I heard the other day was from the American TV soap House, when a doctor referred to MRSA as "mersa" (e.g. However, the indefinite article an is still encountered before the h in both British and American English, particularly with historical: in the Oxford English Corpus around a quarter of examples of historical are preceded with an rather than a.
You can request verification for native languages by completing a simple application that takes only a couple of minutes. a, e, i, o, u) - 'an' before words that you start spelling with 'h' HOWEVER, THIS IS NOT 100% CORRECT!! If the word begins with a vowel sound, use an, such as in "an honorable man," and with spoken acronyms like "an FBI agent." If you have to use an acronym with an indefinite article, the way an acronym is read aloud determines which indefinite article precedes it. I just checked with my father, a GP here in Scotland, and he says that they usually refer to FOBs as "EF-OH-BEEs". Privacy - Print page. - 'a' before words that you spell beginning with a consonant (e.g. The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. KmycJ are K562 cells with a MYC gene [pronounced “mik gene”] inducible by ZnSO4. Does English Have More Words Than Any Other Language? I found that “a 15N isotope” is much more common than “an 15N isotope”: for example, Reaction of hydroxide ion with the neutral phosphotriester exhibits a 15N-isotope effect consistent with only 25% bond fission.
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Today the h is pronounced, and so it is logical to use a rather than an. Therefore, both “a Law Society of Upper Canada form” and its abbreviated form “an LSUC form” are correct. Tancs; all correct! I still have a question: I have an abbreviation in a paper of mine, I abbreviated for reasons of word count limit, but would like the abbreviation to be read in the long form by the reader.
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries). Your email address will not be published. “As a result” as a conjunctive adverbial phrase. Reviewing applications can be fun and only takes a few minutes. on “A” or “An” with abbreviations? Read more about acronyms.
Here’s what the style guides say: Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage says that “a” is used before consonant SOUNDS, not just consonants. The cells show L3 morphology.
All correct. Thanks a bunch! “An” is used when the first sound is a vowel, “a” when the first sound is a consonant. The general rule is that the choice depends on how the abbreviation would be pronounced if read aloud: if the pronunciation starts with a vowel sound, use “an,” and if it starts with a consonant sound, use “a.” Let’s look at some examples: The UTR lengths were calculated as the number of reads in a UTR divided by the number of reads in the CDS multiplied by the CDS length.
Initialisms are abbreviations that you pronounce as a string of letters. Use “an” before words that begin with a vowel as in “an apple,” “an editor,” or “an eager beaver.” However, words that start with the letter “H” do not follow the rule for consonants. The ACS Style Guide states that element names are pronounced even when element symbols are used, and therefore the choice of article depends on the pronunciation of the element name: The analyzed DNA is hybridized with a primer nucleic acid that is associated with a Au surface [pronounced “a gold surface” not “an a-u surface”]. The general rule is that the choice depends on how the abbreviation would be pronounced So, I say: You might want to note that there are sometimes options. Letters and sounds do not always correlate in English. BizWritingTip response: Before I begin to deal with this issue, let’s discuss acronyms versus initialisms. Writing Style – Anglophone/Francophone: To Cap or Not to Cap. For example, I have seen both ‘a Law Society of Upper Canada form’ and ‘an LSUC form.’ Are they both written correctly?” BizWritingTip response: Before I begin to deal with this issue, let’s discuss acronyms versus initialisms. The blocked copy can then be replaced with an UTR-specific primer pair.
It certainly sounds feasible when the acronym is pronounced as a word to use the corresponding article, but many acronyms are consonant only and don't lend themselves to this. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Should I use “a” /”an” as it was written down in long form?
As an example, let’s use NATO.
The trick here is to use your ears (how the acronym is pronounced), not your eyes (how it's spelled). Today the h is pronounced, and so it is logical to use a rather than an.
For example, I have seen both ‘a Law Society of Upper Canada form’ and ‘an LSUC form.’ Are they both written correctly?” BizWritingTip response: Before I begin to deal with this issue, let’s discuss acronyms versus initialisms. CS. In school, you learned to put a definite article, “the,” or an indefinite article, “a” or “an” before a noun. Glamor or Glamour – What’s the Difference. The AP Stylebook’s guidelines for the use of a and an follow the traditional rule. What about element symbols? TGA-DSC measurements were performed under a He flow [pronounced “a helium flow” not “an h-e flow”]. By definition, an acronym is pronounceable and pronounced as a. It depends on the abbreviation and what you mean by “read in long form.” Normally, custom (not writer’s preference) determines how abbreviations and acronyms are read/pronounced by readers. an H-bomb a LASER pointer an LED light a ROM memory an R & D campany an SAT test an X-ray machine Do I get them right? My guess is that this author read this sentence as if the abbreviation were spelled out—“with an untranslated region–specific primer pair”†—and thus I would argue that “an” is not incorrect, as long as it is used consistently throughout the manuscript. I almost corrected 'an SAT test' because it is also pronounced like the past tense of 'sit'-- making it 'a SAT test'; then I realized that many people say 'S-A-T'. It’s an acronym — that is, it’s always pronounced as if it were a word (nā-tō) rather than as the individual letters: N-A-T-O. Scientific papers tend to contain lots of abbreviations—acronyms, initialisms,* gene symbols and protein designations, element and isotope symbols, chemical formulas, and so on—and authors sometimes have difficulty choosing the correct indefinite article (“a” or “an”) to use with abbreviations. HIV (pronounced "aitch eye vee") begins with a vowel sound, so an HIV patient is correct.