I have a question concerning the English language. When should one write 'a' or 'an' in a sentence like: "I just love the G1 as its an android device". But what should you use here: "This is an MCE company". My feeling tells me it should be a, because the next words starts with a 'M', but maybe the rule concerns the sounding of the first word, so it should be an MCE (and it starts with an 'M' ).

so please only people who are really good in English .

afiak you put an 'an' when the next char is an 'a' 'e' 'i' 'u' 'o'.

Regards,
plusminus

That's what I thought, but a movie company used it and they can't be wrong. Can they ?:)

dunno

Maybe it's ok when used before aeiou, but maybe it's different when it's spoken ("M" -> sounds: "AAM")

"This is an MCE company"

I would say "..an MCE company" but don't ask me what the definitive rule is.

I came across a counter example: "a unit". Normally you would say it should be an unit, but that doesn't sound and look quite right...

Yeah you're correct, 'an unit' just sounds strange but 'a unit' is how I would say it. Maybe there's some significance with the actual sound rather than just the leading character. I can't remember all the different sound types (glottal etc. ) but there is a difference between the sounds of unit & umbrella. In this case it would be 'a unit' and 'an umbrella'.

Good question. I'm glad there's a guy called "Dr. Grammar" to come to the rescue.

From http://www.drgrammar.org/faqs/#36:

"Use a before a consonant sound; use an before a vowel sound. Before a letter or an acronym or before numerals, choose a or an according to the way the letter or numeral is pronounced: an FDA directive, a U.N. resolution, a $5.00 bill" (Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage). Please note: This is the basic rule. For a more thorough presentation of the complexities of using a or an, see the source cited here."

So a/an depends on the sound, not the letter. Thus:
An uninhibited young womam ("uh" sort of sound)
an mce extension (an Em-Cee-Eee extension)

Unit is tricky, but is "A unit" according to this thread:
forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=575555
"The reason you have to use a instead of an is the "u-sound" you find at the beginning of words like use, you, European, etc, is, from the phonetic point of view, a semi-vowel, that is, a sound which ressembles a vowel but is used as if it was a consonant. And the same goes to the w-sound (in words like wave, wagon, etc.)"

By the way, I regularly use wordreference (cited above), which has great forums for language learners to help each other with this kind of thing.

Che

Awsome thanks mate, now we know for sure . Nice site too!