An SAK or A SAK ?

E

endurawave

Joined
Dec 4, 2007
Messages
89
Does it bug anyone else when people write "an SAK" instead of "a SAK".

For example, "Do you have an SAK in your pocket?" sounds wrong to me.
"Do you have a SAK in your pocket?" sounds right to me?

No one would ever say "Do you have an Swiss Army Knife in your pocket"?
The same grammar applies to the abbreviation. :confused:
 
'an' is used when the word that follows starts with a vowel, such as 'an animal' or 'an egg beater'. What I think is people that say "SAK" like "sack" use "a SAK" but people that spell out the acronym "ES AY KAY" will type "an S A K".
 
Agreed... but in conversation no one uses the term SAK (sack), they say Swiss Army Knife.

An example, People commonly do use the phrase FBI. So the sentence, "He is an FBI agent" reads correct.

There is probably no right or wrong answer, it's just always bugged me, what can I say:rolleyes::)



Yes I truly must be bored to be discussing this. LOL
 
Give me an A. Give me a B. Give me a C. Give me a D. Give me an E. Give me an F. Give me a G. It varies with the letter.
 
Yeah, maybe not grammatically correct, but there is something charmingly quirky about "an SAK," also catchy. At times I have found myself using it :p .
 
In conversation, yes, one usually says "swiss army knife".

But when I'm reading SAK (or writing it) I think "esee-a-kay". So for me, "an" is correct.

If I read it "sack" "a" would be correct.

It's a question of how you're saying "sak".
 
An is also used in front of letters that sound like a vowel. An H, an L, an M, an N, an R, an S, an X, etc.
 
tiguy7 said:
Give me an A. Give me a B. Give me a C. Give me a D. Give me an E. Give me an F. Give me a G. It varies with the letter.
Click to expand...

tiguy7 said:
An is also used in front of letters that sound like a vowel. An H, an L, an M, an N, an R, an S, an X, etc.
Click to expand...

Whilst the examples that you give hold up within the context that you're using them, generally they don't hold up grammatically. Could you give me an hand? I can see an mouse? I saw an frog? Nasa have just created an robot? I can play an xylophone?

Of course, in gramma there are always exceptions. I've just had an xray....i'll let you have that one.

kniferbro said:
'an' is used when the word that follows starts with a vowel, such as 'an animal' or 'an egg beater'.
Click to expand...

This is correct.
 
Meh, grammar should be descriptive not prescriptive. It's a tool to make sure people understand what you're saying and I'm against reducing it to an arbitrary set of rules. Either one works for that purpose, so neither really bothers me.
 
A SAK is the standard model. The ANSAK has added tweezers a full size flat head scewdriver and a corkscrew ;)
 
Because the acronym is used then the article choice is entirely based on the pronunciation. One would not expand the acronym in place by saying "swiss army knife". If the writer meant to use the pronunciation "es-ee-kay", then "an" is the correct article usage. If the writer meant to use "sak", then "a" is correct. I would say that the acronym used here is not something in formal use but a natural abbreviation from an understood or common context. So, the pronunciation might be the contention here and not the article being used.
 
I think I would refer to it as 'a sack' just as soon as I would say 'the damaged vessel sent out a sauce', or I read about 'a seck ruling on the stock market'. Until then, an SAK, an SOS, an SEC.
 
An is used in front of LETTERS that sound like a vowel. WORDS are a case by case application. It will take me an hour to ride a horse to town. An honest opinion is not as rare as a hen's tooth.
 
Two me it sounds weird to say a SAK but it sounds right to say a Swiss army knife.
 
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