The disappearing 'an'

[wtaf37]

Since when has 'an' become replaced by 'a' before words begining with a vowel? Hearing for example, 'a apple' or 'a orphan'...
Driving me mad!

I haven't heard that at all.

I haven't heard this either

@SoupDragon Maybe I just watch bad TV! But have heard it on news programmes and in interviews!

The only one I’ve really noticed is that an hotel has become a hotel. This was definitely not the case when I was at school.

I’ve never heard this.

I havent noticed it with words beginning with vowels but its definitely fallen out of usage with semi-silent h words like hotel and historic.

@OublietteBravo

The only one I’ve really noticed is that an hotel has become a hotel. This was definitely not the case when I was at school.

It was "a hotel" when I was at school though (70s and 80s)

It's probably come from the same place that 'the' before a vowel has become 'thu' instead of 'thi/thee'. 'Thu east' 'thu end' etc etc.

You'll be told that language evolves OP and you must embrace it. Even when it sounds like it's coming from a 3 year old.

@OublietteBravo

The only one I’ve really noticed is that an hotel has become a hotel. This was definitely not the case when I was at school.

A hotel is correct.

It depends on the way you pronounce hotel though. If you pronounce the ‘h’ then a hotel is correct. But the pronunciation I grew up with dropped the ‘h’ and thus an hotel (pronounced ‘an otel’) was absolutely correct.

It’s like hour and honest. You’d still say ‘an hour’ or ‘an honest man’ because you’re not pronouncing the ‘h’ (although I haven’t noticed these changing).

I can handle ‘a hotel’ in spoken English, but it always looks wrong in written English.

It depends on the way you pronounce hotel though. If you pronounce the ‘h’ then a hotel is correct. But the pronunciation I grew up with dropped the ‘h’ and thus an hotel (pronounced ‘an otel’) was absolutely correct.

I don't think dropping the h is correct either though.

@wtaf37

Since when has 'an' become replaced by 'a' before words begining with a vowel? Hearing for example, 'a apple' or 'a orphan'... Driving me mad!

I notice this all the time and it drives me mad too! It's not usually a short 'a' but a long one. I keep hearing it from supposedly intelligent, well spoken people and it really grates.

@campion

It's probably come from the same place that 'the' before a vowel has become 'thu' instead of 'thi/thee'. 'Thu east' 'thu end' etc etc.

You'll be told that language evolves OP and you must embrace it. Even when it sounds like it's coming from a 3 year old.

bare with me, but I fink your write their

There's a serious of books I like which constantly refers to "an historian." Sounds wrong to me but as it's used so consistently across the entire series I'm assuming it must be correct?

The only people I hear doing this are my two DCs one of whom has diagnosed SEN and the other possibly undiagnosed...

@elelel

It depends on the way you pronounce hotel though. If you pronounce the ‘h’ then a hotel is correct. But the pronunciation I grew up with dropped the ‘h’ and thus an hotel (pronounced ‘an otel’) was absolutely correct.

I don't think dropping the h is correct either though.

• I can’t actually change the local pronunciation of a word. At least it meant that it was immediately obvious to me why the French was l’hôtel rather than le hôtel.

I’m hearing it all the time, too, OP - even on Radio 4. It’s infuriating.

I haven’t heard that yet except from little children who are learning to talk!

You'll be told that language evolves OP and you must embrace it. Even when it sounds like it's coming from a 3 year old.

I wonder whether people had the same complaint as we drifted from
Chaucer and Shakespeare to modern English. Or even from 1930s English.

Silent letters are common in English grammar but the word ‘hotel’ specifically has changed in its usage so now ‘a hotel’ is probably the more accepted term. But @OublietteBravo is absolutely correct in that it still looks wrong written and the silent h is still used in her examples @elelel would you really say ‘a HON-est man’ or ‘a HOW-er’? Because that’s how you’d have to be pronouncing those words if you use a hard h and aside from being grammatically incorrect it just sounds weird.

@OublietteBravo

The only one I’ve really noticed is that an hotel has become a hotel. This was definitely not the case when I was at school.

The correct grammar has always been 'a hotel' though, 'an hotel' was never actually correct. H is not a vowel.

I want to know where 'to be' has disappeared to! See adverts for people selling goods and using words such as 'needs gone'.

@Elodeastar words with a silent h are one of those pesky special cases in English grammar where the usual rule does not apply.

@wtaf37

Since when has 'an' become replaced by 'a' before words begining with a vowel? Hearing for example, 'a apple' or 'a orphan'... Driving me mad!

I have heard this a few times too, and it does grate a bit. Obviously if it is a (young) child, an adult/a child with learning difficulties, or someone who is learning English as a new language, then it's more understandable if the odd error is made. The 'an' before the 'H' sound always sounded odd to me too, if pronounced properly H is not a vowel - people saying 'otel' are actually just not pronouncing the H at all, and effectively making a new word. Presumably they'd still write it down as 'a hotel' and not 'an otel' though? Dialect is a great thing, and we need to keep it alive, but we need to be able to speak/write in more formal language too, imho.