a / an In modern written English, we use a before a word beginning with a
consonant sound, however it may be spelled (a frog, a university, a
euphemism). We use an before a word beginning with a vowel sound (an
orange, an hour). At one time, an was an acceptable alternative before
words beginning with a consonant sound but spelled with a vowel (an one,
an united appeal), but this usage is now entirely obsolete
An was also once a common variant before words beginning with h in
which the first syllable was unstressed; thus 18th-century authors wrote
either a historical or an historical, but a history, not an history. This usage
made sense in that people often did not pronounce the initial h in words
such as historical and heroic, but by the late 19th century, educated
speakers were usually giving their initial h’s a huff, and the practice of
writing an began to die out. Nowadays it survives primarily before the word
historical. You may also come across it in the phrases an hysterectomy or
an hereditary trait. These usages are acceptable in formal writing.
able The construction able to takes an infinitive to show the subject’s ability to
accomplish an action: We were able to finish the project thanks to a grant
from a large corporation. The new submarine is able to dive twice as fast
as the older model. Some people think able to should be avoided with
passive constructions involving forms of the verb be: The problem was able
to be solved by using a new method. Since the problem has no ability to
accomplish an action, this reasoning goes, it is not able to do anything;

verge of,” as in I’m about to go downtown. The construction not about to
may be simply the negative of this, especially in response to questions: I’m
not about to go downtown. I’m about to go to the park. But in most
instances not about to expresses intention or determination, as in We are
not about to negotiate with terrorists. A majority of the Usage Panel
considers this usage acceptable in speech but not in formal writing
 
 
 
 
above The use of above as an adjective or noun in referring to a preceding text is
most common in business and legal writing. In general writing, its use as an
adjective (the above figures) was accepted by a majority of the Usage
Panel in an earlier survey, but its use as a noun (read the above) was
accepted by only a minority
 
 
 
 
 
access The verb access has become standard in reference to computers, as in
This program makes it considerably easier to access files on another disk.
In recent years, people have begun to extend access to nontechnical
contexts, giving it the broader meaning “to obtain goods, especially by

 
 
 
act / action The words act and action both mean “a deed” and “the process of doing.”
However, other senses of act, such as “a decision made by a legislative
body,” and of action, such as “habitual or vigorous activity,” show that act
tends to refer to a deed while action tends to refer to the process of doing.
Thus people commit sex acts every day, but never sex actions. If they are
seen, they are caught in the act, but not in the action. By the same token,
they may want a piece of the action, but not of the act. As you can see, the
demands of meaning or idiom often require one word or the other. But in
cases where either can be used, either is acceptable: My act (or action)
was premature
 
 
 
 
admission / admittance Some people insist that admittance should be used only to refer to
achieving physical access to a place (He was denied admittance to the
courtroom) and that admission should be used to refer to achieving entry to
a group or institution (her admission to the club, China’s admission to the
United Nations). There is no harm in observing this distinction, but don’t be
surprised if you see others ignoring it, for many people do. Admission is
much more common in the sense “a fee paid for the right of entry”: The