Proper English Question

[ucfgrad93]

I just texted someone and my wording was, "Call them in an hour." When I looked back at my text according to English rules it should have been "a hour."

An when the preceding word contains only a vowel is what I was taught.

But in this situation "an" sounds much more appropriate.

English gurus chime in please

Does it really matter? Were you texting a grammar Nazi who will never speak to you again if you got it wrong?

 

[Shrink]

Does it really matter? Were you texting a grammar Nazi who will never speak to you again if you got it wrong?

Aside from finding the word "Nazi" used in this trivial and offhand fashion indicative of a lack of any appreciation of it's of it's horrid history...some feel that using proper grammar (not to mention spelling, punctuation and syntax) matters. The degradation of language due either to poor education, ignorance, or online usage patterns is, in the opinion of some, a sad loss of the ability to communicate clearly, precisely, and with some actual style.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Does it really matter? Were you texting a grammar Nazi who will never speak to you again if you got it wrong?

Yes, it does matter to me. At one level, an incorrectly phrased text tells me that the sender is careless, careless of language and unconcerned with precision in meaning and expression. At another, if it is an incorrectly phrased text which has been sent in a professional context, yet another, worse, message, one perhaps, of incompetence, or a lack of professionalism is thus conveyed.

Besides, language itself - and thus, how one chooses to express oneself, also matters. There are reasons why a generally agreed way of expressing oneself has become an accepted norm.

Language is not neutral, and, while it is a vehicle for expressing thoughts, ideas, feelings, needs, it is also a vehicle for transmitting values and attitudes.

In any case, I, for one, value precision and evidence of actual thought in the use of language.

Re the (intellectually lazy, historically inaccurate, and, it can be argued, gratuitously offensive) use of the noun 'Nazi' in a discussion on correct usage of a specific form of language, I have to say that this sort of sloppy usage actually serves to debase, degrade and devalue the true meaning of this particular noun, and to dilute the power of language as a consequence.

Aside from finding the word "Nazi" used in this trivial and offhand fashion indicative of a lack of any appreciation of it's of it's horrid history...some feel that using proper grammar (not to mention spelling, punctuation and syntax) matters. The degradation of language due either to poor education, ignorance, or online usage patterns is, in the opinion of some, a sad loss of the ability to communicate clearly, precisely, and with some actual style.

Very well said.

 

[elistan]

A very, very old recipe, as written:

To Make a Veal Kidney Florentine

Shred the kidney small fat & all, half a handfull of young spinage, 2 sprigs of parsley, a lettice all shread small, 3 pippins par'd & shread, half the peel of a sivil orange boyled & shread small, some pounded mace & cinnimon, nutmeg, sugar, salt to yr taste, an handfull of currants, a large handfull of greated bread, 3 spoonfulls of sack, 3 of rose water, 3 eggs. Mix all well together & put them in a dish with puff paste at bottom & cross bar it at top. Bake it in a slow oven. This is for first course side dish.

Gives you an idea how how things used to be pronounced.

From Three Ways Cooking Has Changed Over The Last 300 Years

Edit - failed to notice the other "a handfull." Perhaps the "degradation" of language is an illusion. Perhaps people follow the rules now just as well as they've always followed them. Perhaps there is no loss of communication as compared to the past.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

A very, very old recipe, as written:



Gives you an idea how how things used to be pronounced.

From Three Ways Cooking Has Changed Over The Last 300 Years

Excellent post, and a great - and fascinating - example of the evolution of pronunciation and grammar in the use of English over the past few centuries. Thanks for posting it - a very enjoyable and interesting read.

 

[sim667]

I'd have said thats probably meant to be a hour, but most people would say an hour as it rolls off the tongue a bit better.

 

[Gregg2]

I'd have said thats probably meant to be a hour, but most people would say an hour as it rolls off the tongue a bit better.

Didn't you see posts #3 and #4 on page one? You're on the right track with the tongue thing though.

(I'd have said that's, or that it's.)

 

[rhett7660]

The whole question of which is correct, "a" or "an" preceding a word beginning with "h", is, or was, unquestionably "an". It is, or was (depending on whether you are a language purist, or more comfortable with less formal usage) a definite grammatical rule. (No source...too lazy!)

For example, the "rule" is that the phrase should be "an historical event"...but many grammarians assert that the "rule" is dead now, and "a historical event" is just fine.

It is my understanding that many newspaper and writing style guides no longer insist on the old "rule".

So if you're a purist (or a stiff necked pedant, like me!), "an" should precede any word starting with an "h". If you are less concerned with carefully applied grammatical rules, then "a" is, sadly p), acceptable.

Are you referencing the The Gregg Reference Manual? If so, it is page 358/1101

A-an. In choosing a or an, consider the sound (not the spelling) of the word that follows. Use the article a before all consonant sounds, including sounded "H" (as in hat), long u (as in use), and "O" with the sound of "W" (as in one).

When you are dealing with an abbreviation, the choice of "A" or "AN" will depend on whether the "H" is sounded or left silent. In writing, "A historic occasion" is the form more commonly used.

There is more, but I do not feel like typing it out.

 

[Shrink]

Are you referencing the The Gregg Reference Manual? If so, it is page 358/1101

Thanks for the reference!

Actually, I had no reference, just a vague memory grammar instruction in school. We used Perrin about 100 years ago!

 

[Gregg2]

Are you referencing the The Gregg Reference Manual? If so, it is page 358/1101

Thanks for the plug.

 

[rhett7660]

Thanks for the plug.

Ha!!!!

 

[sim667]

I'd have said thats probably meant to be a hour, but most people would say an hour as it rolls off the tongue a bit better.

I did, but I didn't trust them