an

an

an¹ [an; ] unstressed [, ən, 'n]

adj., indefinite article

[weakened var. of ONE < OE an, the numeral one; the older and fuller form of A²]

1. one; one sort of [to bake an apple pie]

2. each; any one [pick an apple from the tree]: The chief grammatical function of an (or a) is to connote a thing not previously noted or recognized, while the connotes a thing previously noted or recognized

prep.

to each; in each; for each; per [two an hour] An is now used before all words beginning with a vowel sound or a silent h [an ox, an honor ]; older British usage favored an before the sound (yo͞o) [an union ], but this is now nearly obsolete; some people continue the practice of using an before h in an unstressed initial syllable in certain words, whether or not they actually pronounce the h [an historian ]: See also A²

an² [an]

conj.

[ME < and, AND]

1. and: an informal spelling

2. Archaic if