a/an/the page. How come you can use 'an' for "historical" even though it has a pronounced "h" sound. The page explains that an 'can' be used for words like "historical" but it does not explain why there are exceptions or what some other examples would be. Any clarification would be great.

Question

anonymous · Answer

The British pronunciation does not voice the "h."  Thus, "an historical" sounds like "an istorical."  So, it's a British thing.  If you're writing in an American style, you should stick to "a historical."  But yes, both are technically correct, depending on where you are writing from.