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Re: "a SQL sever" vs "an SQL server"

Subject: Re: "a SQL sever" vs "an SQL server"
From: Odile Sullivan-Tarazi <odile -at- mindspring -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 10:37:08 -0700



The article must align with the abbreviated form, not the phrase the form stands in for, because the form of the article is determined by sound.

Some abbreviated forms are pronounced as words, some sounded out as letters, which for a handful of consonants (F, H, L, M, N, S, X) and one vowel (U) determines which of the two forms of the indefinite article precedes. Whenever one of these letters begins the abbreviation, pronunciation (sound or letter?) will be key.

Note that no one would quarrel with "an HTML" (because "H" spoken as a letter is preceded by "an," not "a"), but that you would never use "an" before the spelled-out phrase that begins with "hypertext." At least, I wouldn't. The treatment of voiced and silent H is dependent upon the discourse community, and my ears hear only what I'm accustomed to on that score.


Odile




At 1:10 PM -0400 9/22/05, Art Campbell wrote:

I was always taught to use the article associated with the words that made
the acronym, not the acronym... So "a Structured Query Language
server" would be correct; "an Structured Query Language server" would
not.

On 9/22/05, arroxaneullman -at- aol -dot- com <arroxaneullman -at- aol -dot- com> wrote:
This came up today.

In our old documentation the author uses "an" for SQL server. But all
our people pronounced "SQL" as "sequel." So, one of the engineers came
to me and said, "this is all wrong, it should be 'a SQL server'!" I
explained that when pronouncing it as "ess cue ell" you would us "an."

--
Art Campbell art -dot- campbell -at- gmail -dot- com
"... In my opinion, there's nothing in this world beats a '52 Vincent
and a redheaded girl." -- Richard Thompson
No disclaimers apply.
DoD 358




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Follow-Ups:

References:
"a SQL sever" vs "an SQL server": From: arroxaneullman
Re: "a SQL sever" vs "an SQL server": From: Art Campbell

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