A Dictionary of Modern English Usage (The Oxford Library of English Usage ; V. 2)
Contributors: Ernest Gowers (Editor)
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: September 10, 1987
Language: eng
Number of pages: 750
ISBN-13: 9780198691150
First sentence: a, an. 1. A is used before all consonants except silent h (a history,an hour) ; an was formerly usual before an unaccented syllable beginning with h (an historical work), but now that the h in such words is pronounced the distinction has become pedantic, &amp; a historical should be said &amp; written ; similarly an humble is now meaningless &amp; undesirable.