an

¹

[ uhn; when stressed an ]

indefinite article

1. the form of a before an initial vowel sound ( an arch; an honor ) and sometimes, especially in British English, before an initial unstressed syllable beginning with a silent or weakly pronounced h :

   an historian.

an-

²

1. a prefix occurring before stems beginning with a vowel or h in loanwords from Greek, where it means “not,” “without,” “lacking” ( anarchy; anecdote ); used in the formation of compound words:

   anelectric.

an

³

[ uhn; when stressed an ]

conjunction

1. Informal. and.
2. Archaic. if.

an-

⁴

1. variant of ad- before n: announce.

an-

⁵

1. variant of ana- before a vowel:

   anion.

An

⁶

[ ahn ]

noun

1. the Sumerian god of heaven: the counterpart of the Akkadian Anu.

An

⁷

Symbol, Chemistry.

1. actinon.

AN

⁸

or A.-N.

abbreviation for

1. Anglo-Norman.

-an

⁹

1. a suffix occurring originally in adjectives borrowed from Latin, formed from nouns denoting places ( Roman; urban ) or persons ( Augustan ), and now productively forming English adjectives by extension of the Latin pattern. Attached to geographic names, it denotes provenance or membership ( American; Chicagoan; Tibetan ), the latter sense now extended to membership in social classes, religious denominations, etc., in adjectives formed from various kinds of noun bases ( Episcopalian; pedestrian; Puritan; Republican ) and membership in zoological taxa ( acanthocephalan; crustacean ). Attached to personal names, it has the additional senses “contemporary with” ( Elizabethan; Jacobean ) or “proponent of ” ( Hegelian; Freudian ) the person specified by the noun base. The suffix -an, and its variant -ian also occurs in a set of personal nouns, mainly loanwords from French, denoting one who engages in, practices, or works with the referent of the base noun ( comedian; grammarian; historian; theologian ); this usage is especially productive with nouns ending in -ic ( electrician; logician; technician ). See -ian for relative distribution with that suffix.

an.

¹⁰

abbreviation for

1. in the year.

A.N.

¹¹

abbreviation for

1. Anglo-Norman.
2. Associate in Nursing.

AN

¹

abbreviation for

1. Anglo-Norman

an

²

/ æn; ən /

determiner

1. a form of the indefinite article used before an initial vowel sound

   an honour

   an old car

   an elf

an

³

the internet domain name for

1. Netherlands Antilles

an

⁴

/ æn; ən /

conjunction

1. subordinating an obsolete or dialect word for if See and

An

⁵

the chemical symbol for

1. actinon

an-

⁶

prefix

1. not; without

   anaphrodisiac

-an

⁷

suffix

1. forming adjectives and nouns belonging to or relating to; a person belonging to or coming from

   European

2. forming adjectives and nouns typical of or resembling; a person typical of

   Elizabethan

3. forming adjectives and nouns adhering to or following; an adherent of

   Christian

4. forming nouns a person who specializes or is expert in

   phonetician

   dietitian

An

⁸

/ ɑːn /

noun

1. myth the Sumerian sky god Babylonian counterpartAnu

Usage

An was formerly often used before words that begin with h and are unstressed on the first syllable: an hotel ; an historic meeting . Sometimes the initial h was not pronounced. This usage is now becoming obsolete

Grammar Note

See a ¹.

Word History and Origins

Origin of an¹

before 950; Middle English; Old English ān one in a weakened sense

Origin of an²

< Greek. See a- ⁶, in- ³, un- ¹

Origin of an³

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English, unstressed phonetic variant of and

Origin of an⁴

Middle English < Latin -ānus, -āna, -ānum; in some words replacing -ain, -en < Old French < Latin

Origin of an⁵

From the Latin word annō

Word History and Origins

Origin of an¹

Old English ān one

Origin of an²

from Greek

Origin of an³

from Latin -ānus, suffix of adjectives

Example Sentences

HIS DAD, AN ecologist and amateur photographer, instilled in his son the importance of pictures in engaging people in conservation.

From Seattle Times

Trump previously insulted Daniels by calling her "horseface" in another Truth Social post insisting that he "NEVER HAD AN AFFAIR."

From Salon

Trump lashed out over the report, calling the case "old news" and insisting he "NEVER HAD AN AFFAIR."

From Salon

With the imminent publication of his final book titled "Magpie Murders," eagle-eyed readers would realize that unscrambling the first letters for each novel in the detective series would spell out "AN ANAGRAM."

From Salon

In her biggest political gamble to date, Meloni and a contingent of AN veterans left in 2012 to co-found Brothers of Italy, named after the opening lines of the national anthem.

From Reuters

Related Words

• an