Red Blob Games publishes guide on using a and an in English

Red Blob Games published a blog post on September 16, 2026 titled “English a vs an,” in which the author explains the conventional rules governing the indefinite articles “a” and “an.” The article clarifies that the choice depends on the initial sound of the following word rather than its spelling, outlining that “a” precedes consonant sounds (e.g., “a cat”) while “an” precedes vowel sounds (e.g., “an hour”). It also details common exceptions, such as words beginning with a silent “h” (“an heir”), words that start with a vowel letter but a consonant sound (“a university,” “a European”), and acronyms pronounced with an initial vowel sound (“an MBA”). The post includes interactive diagrams and examples to illustrate these patterns, and it references style guides that endorse the phonetic approach.

The discussion of the post on Hacker News (item 49769944) attracted 90 points and 88 comments, indicating strong community interest. Commenters debated edge cases, shared additional examples, and referenced linguistic sources to support or question the presented guidelines. The thread also highlighted the educational value of the visualizations for both native speakers and learners of English. Overall, the article and its ensuing conversation provide a concise reference for correctly applying “a” and “an” in contemporary written English.