Myriora English › Grammar and punctuation › Chapter 1: Word classes

Determiners

Ages 7–9Chapter 1 · Lesson 8

In this lesson

A determiner comes before a noun.
A or an means any one, and the means a particular one.
Some, many and every tell us how many.
And use an before a vowel sound: an apple, an hour.

Your turn

A or an? Blank hour.

Show the answer

An hour! The H is silent, so hour starts with a vowel sound.

The common mistake

Here's a common mistake. Lots of people write an before every word that starts with U. But uniform starts with the same sound as you. So it's a uniform.

Try it at home

a or an snap: say a noun out loud (apple, hour, unicorn, horse) and race to say a or an first. Remember to listen to the first sound, not the first letter.

Read the whole lesson

Hello, and welcome to Myriora English! Look at the little words before these nouns: a cat, the moon, some apples, every child. These words are called determiners. They come before a noun, and tell us which one, or how many.

A and an mean one, any one: a dog. The means one particular dog: the dog next door. Some, many and every tell us how many: some sweets, every day.

But when do we use an? Listen to the first sound of the next word, not the first letter. If it starts with a vowel sound, use an: an apple, an egg. Hour sounds like our, because the H is silent. So it's an hour. But unicorn starts with the same sound as you, so it's a unicorn.

Let's try one together. A or an? Blank umbrella. Say it out loud!

An umbrella! Umbrella starts with a vowel sound, so we say an. Well done if you said an!

Here's a common mistake. Lots of people write an before every word that starts with U. But uniform starts with the same sound as you. So it's a uniform.

Your turn! A or an? Blank hour. Pick the right card. You've got eight seconds, or pause the video. Go!

Time's up! An hour! The H is silent, so hour starts with a vowel sound.

Quick review. A determiner comes before a noun. A or an means any one, and the means a particular one. Some, many and every tell us how many. And use an before a vowel sound: an apple, an hour. See you next time!