Hear it pronouncedan
Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
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See also Appendix:Variations of "an"
Contents |
[ Translingual
[ Abbreviation
an
[ Synonyms
- arg (ISO 639-3)
[ English
| Rank of this word in the English language, from analyzing texts from Project Gutenberg. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| one | so | me | #41: an | we | who | said |
[ Pronunciation
- (stressed)
- (unstressed)
- IPA: /ən/, SAMPA: /@n/
- Audio (US), unstressed in the phrase "an egg"help, file
[ Etymology 1
[ Article
an
- Indefinite article; used when the noun may refer to one of several possibilities. An egg could be any of several eggs, while the egg refers to a specific egg (already mentioned or known).
[ Usage notes
- (indefinite article, preposition): The word an is used before vowel sounds, and a before consonant sounds:
- a dog
- an egg
- an hour (the h is not pronounced)
- a hog (the h is pronounced)
- a yak (y is a consonant sound in this word)
- a user (has /j/ as its initial sound, which is a consonant)
- an umbrella (has /ʌ/ as its initial sound, which is a vowel)
- a woman (/w/ is a consonant)
- a one (has /w/ as its initial sound, which is a consonant)
- an onion (has /ʌ/ as its initial sound, which is a vowel)
- There is one occasional exception. The form an is sometimes used before h even when the h is pronounced. The usual example is an historic occasion. Though current in some dialects that pronounce the h, this is considered by many to be affected, pedantic or obsolete. One good test as to whether a speaker's dialect truly supports an before pronounced h as opposed to just being the typical an historic occasion affectation is whether such person would say I'm going to go on an hike right now. There would appear to be no linguistic or phonological reason to distinguish historical and hike in this manner.
- See also the Wikipedia article about articles.
[ Translations
indefinite article
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[ Etymology 2
[ Conjunction
an
[ Translations
[ Etymology 3
From Georgian.
[ Noun
|
Singular |
Plural |
an (plural ans)
[ Etymology 4
From the Old English preposition an/on.
[ Preposition
an
- In each; to or for each; per.
- I was only going twenty miles an hour.
[ Usage notes
- This is the same as the word a in such contexts, modified because of preceding an unpronounced h. The train was speeding along at a mile a minute.
[ Synonyms
[ Translations
in each; to or for each; per
| Rank of this word in the English language, from analyzing texts from Project Gutenberg. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| one | so | me | #41: an | we | who | said |
[ References
- “an” in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
[ Breton
[ Article
an
[ See also
[ Crimean Tatar
[ Noun
an
[ Declension
| Nominative an |
Genitive anniñ |
Dative ange |
| Accusative anni |
Locative ande |
Ablative anden |
[ References
- Useinov & Mireev Dictionary, Simferopol, Dolya, 2002 [1]
[ French
[ Pronunciation
[ Noun
an m. (plural ans)
- A year.
[ Synonyms
[ German
[ Etymology
[ Pronunciation
[ Preposition
an (+ accusative/dative)
- on
- by
- at
- Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand : I hang the picture on the wall.
- Das Bild hängt an der Wand : The picture hangs on the wall.
- Schauen Sie an die Tafel : Look at the blackboard.
[ Usage notes
- The preposition "an" is used with accusative case if the verb shows movement from one place to another, whereas it is used with dative case if the verb shows location.
[ Irish
[ Pronunciation
- IPA: [ənˠ]; between consonants [ə]
[ Article
an
- Form of the definite article.
[ Usage notes
- Used in the following situations:
- nominative singular masculine (attaches t- to a vowel, e.g. an t-uisce 'the water')
- nominative singular feminine (triggers lenition, e.g. an bhean 'the woman')
- genitive singular masculine (triggers lenition, e.g. an pháiste 'of the child')
- dative singular masculine and feminine (triggers eclipsis, e.g. ag an gcailín 'at the girl')
[ Related terms
[ Particle
an (interrogative)
- Used to form direct and indirect questions; triggers eclipsis; takes the dependent form (when available) of irregular verbs.
- An bhfuil tú ag éisteacht? — Are you listening?
- Níl a fhios agam an bhfuil sé anseo — I don't know if/whether he is here
[ Japanese
[ Romaji
an (hiragana あん)
- 案: plan, scheme
- 餡: bean paste
[ Latin
[ Etymology
The etymology of an is very obscure.
[ Conjunction
an (interrogative)
- (introduces questions expecting negative answer or further question) can it be that
- whether
- or, either
- Vide utrum vis an...
- Consider whether you want to or...
- Vide utrum vis an...
[ Usage notes
- Used with utrum (“‘whether’”) in the construction utrum...an (“‘whether...or’”):
- Nescio quid intersit, utrum nunc veniam, an ad decem annos.
- I know not what matter it is, whether I come now or after ten years.
- Nescio quid intersit, utrum nunc veniam, an ad decem annos.
[ Derived terms
[ Mandarin
[ Pinyin syllable
an
- A transliteration of any of a number of Chinese characters properly represented as having one of four tones, ān, án, ǎn, or àn.
[ Usage notes
English transcriptions of Chinese speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Chinese language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.
[ Old English
[ Etymology
Common Germanic *ainaz, from Indo-European *oinos. Germanic cognates include Old Frisian ān, Old Saxon ēn (Dutch een), Old High German ein (German ein), Old Norse einn (Swedish en), Gothic 𐌰𐌹𐌽𐍃. The IE root is also thee source of Latin unus, Greek οινος (oinos), Old Irish oen.
[ Pronunciation
- IPA: /ɑːn/
[ Cardinal number
ān
- (cardinal) one
[ Usage notes
As in modern English, usage doubles as both a numeral and a pronoun.
[ Article
ān
- a, an (indefinite article)
[ Adjective
ān
[ Derived terms
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