Add something that changes from a to an based on the following word #39

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opened 2025-07-20 10:18:00 -04:00 by jean · 3 comments

jean commented

2025-07-20 10:18:00 -04:00

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a/an (word)/

e.g.
a/an Earl/ -> an Earl
a/an Queen/ -> a Queen

a/an (word)/ e.g. a/an Earl/ -> an Earl a/an Queen/ -> a Queen

jean commented

2025-07-20 10:27:43 -04:00

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Would it be better to remove the final slash? The final slash is meant to distinguish it from using "a/an" regularly, but it'd be better to have than not.
Is a/an too common? Yes.

aan/word? Too cryptic!
a/an word? Maybe best, but still common outside of this. :/

Let's go with a/an.

- Would it be better to remove the final slash? The final slash is meant to distinguish it from using "a/an" regularly, but it'd be better to have than not. - Is a/an too common? Yes. aan/word? Too cryptic! a/an word? Maybe best, but still common outside of this. :/ Let's go with a/an.

jean commented

2025-07-20 10:38:53 -04:00

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Big issue: vowels don't necessarily indicate how a word is pronounced and, as a result, whether it should be prefaced with a/an.

jean commented

2025-07-20 11:53:17 -04:00

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Okay. I've found a library that does this. In cases where the library doesn't work, the user can add an also replacement of "a/an also/(word)" -> "a (word)" or "an (word)" depending on what sounds right.

It doesn't work for plurals, but I don't think it needs to. In case I ever want to check for plurals, this library does that.

Some specifics on how it does work:

Acronyms .e.g. UFO are treated as having their letters pronounced. This could cause some unfortunate edge cases when used in conjunction with the capitalize function, but capitalize really shouldn't be used on strings of words. It may be good to specify as much in the wiki.
Numbers can be treated colloquially (a/an 1900 -> nineteen-hundred) or not (a/an 1900 -> a one-thousand nine-hundred) and I'm only going to treat numbers as colloquial, since dates are much more commonly when something like this would be written.

Okay. I've found [a library]( https://www.npmjs.com/package/indefinite) that does this. In cases where the library doesn't work, the user can add an also replacement of "a/an also/(word)" -> "a (word)" or "an (word)" depending on what sounds right. It doesn't work for plurals, but I don't think it needs to. In case I ever want to check for plurals, [this library](https://www.npmjs.com/package/is-plural) does that. Some specifics on how it does work: - Acronyms .e.g. UFO are treated as having their letters pronounced. This could cause some unfortunate edge cases when used in conjunction with the capitalize function, but capitalize really shouldn't be used on strings of words. It may be good to specify as much in the wiki. - Numbers can be treated colloquially (a/an 1900 -> nineteen-hundred) or not (a/an 1900 -> a one-thousand nine-hundred) and I'm only going to treat numbers as colloquial, since dates are much more commonly when something like this would be written.