A or an — Sentence Correction Aptitude Question
A or an: Choose the correct sentence: Answer and worked solution on CodeKairo.
- Topic: Sentence Correction
- Section: Verbal Ability
- Difficulty: Medium
- Time target: 55 seconds
Question
Choose the correct sentence:
Options
- He is an university student.
- He is a university student.
- He is an unique candidate.
- He is a hour late.
Show the answer and the worked solution
Correct answer: B. He is a university student.
Worked solution
- An is used before a vowel sound, not merely a vowel letter.
- University begins with a 'yoo' sound, so it takes a.
- Hour begins with a vowel sound, so it takes an.
Answer: He is a university student.
The idea
Say the word aloud. A university, a European, a one-rupee coin; but an hour, an honest man, an MBA.
Shortcut. Sound the noun, not the spelling: university and unique begin with a 'y' sound and take a; hour begins with a vowel sound and takes an. Only 'a university' matches.
Common trap. "He is an university student." — choosing 'an' because university begins with the vowel letter u; the article follows the sound, and 'yoo' is a consonant sound.