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© Copyright 1999, Jim Loy
Many people think that it is correct to say, "an historic event." Of course, the indefinite article is "a" when followed by a consonant sound ("a boy"), and "an" when followed by a vowel sound ("an ace"). The sound is what is important, not whether the word actually begins with a consonant or a vowel. For example, "a uniform" is correct because "uniform" begins with a "y" sound. Similarly, "an honest man" is correct because "honest" begins with a vowel sound; the "h" is silent. In some languages, Cockney English in particular, "h" is always silent. And so, we hear "an historic event" or "an historian." "H" is a soft (the softest) consonant. The phrase should be "a historic event." The American dictionaries and grammar books tell us that "an historic event" is British or an attempt to sound educated or superior.