When To Use 'An' and When To Use 'A' This is a common mistake amongst non-English speakers. Many confuse the use of 'an' and 'a' so I'll be explaining it here. 'an' is only used before a word beginning with a vowel (a, e, u, i, o) eg:- an Elephant. an Apple. an Orange. an Umbrella. an Ice cube. 'a' is used before consonants (b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, w, x, y, z) NOTE: 'an' is not used before the letter 'H', a lot of my Italian friends make this mistake. 'H' is not a vowel, it's a consonant. The only time you use 'an' before 'H' is when the 'H' is silent. eg:- an hOur. There are a few exceptions to the rule above. We don't say 'an university', we say 'a university' but mostly because the U in university is pronounced as 'yew' not as a vowel. This may look confusing but if you read a lot of English books, you'll never make these mistakes. I hope this helps.