The short answer is ‘an’ SMSF.
The medium answer is that it probably does not really matter, because whichever you use, your reader will almost certainly understand you.
However, there is a longer and, we dare say, more fascinating answer.
The rule that most of us would recall from school is that we should use ‘an’ instead of ‘a’ if the following word starts with a vowel. However, that is not quite how spoken English works. In spoken English we tend to use ‘an’ where the following word starts with a vowel sound.
The initialism ‘SMSF’ starts with a vowel sound, namely the same type of open-mid front unrounded ‘E’-type vowel sound that we Australians tend to use to pronounce words like ‘pet’. This becomes visually obvious if we see ‘SMSF’ spelt not in the usual Latin alphabet, but in the International Phonetic Alphabet: /ˌɛs ɛm ɛs ɛf/ (We typically only see the International Phonetic Alphabet in dictionaries.)
The Commonwealth Government used to physically print a style manual titled named Style Manual: For Authors, Editors And Printers. DBA Lawyers has a version in its library, which states:
- Use ‘a’ or ‘an’ before a shortened form
- 7.90 The use of ‘a’ or ‘an’ before a shortened form follows the same general principes as their use before words—the guide is spoken sound:
- An RAN frigate but a Royal Australian Navy frigate
- She became an MP but She became a Member of Parliament
- An HIC report but a Health Insurance Commissioner report
- In these examples, RAN, MP and HIC are abbreviations and as such as and spoken letter by letter.
- 7.91 Acronyms are spoken as words and are so treated:
- A UNESCO initiative
- An Ansett flight
Eagle-eye readers will see the use of ‘Ansett’ as an example and correctly infer that DBA Lawyers has a very old version of the style manual!
In order to write this article, we consulted a more up to date version of the style manual.
The style manual is now online at https://www.stylemanual.gov.au/. It no longer expressly addresses this issue in the equivalent way as above. However, the style manual does now state in its section titled ‘Determiners’:
- Choose ‘a’ or ‘an’ according to the sound of the word after it:
- Use ‘a’ if the following word starts with a consonant sound.
- Use ‘an’ if the following word starts with a vowel sound.
Accordingly, we believe that ‘an SMSF’ is the better option to select.
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This article is for general information only and should not be relied upon without first seeking advice from an appropriately qualified professional. The above does not constitute financial product advice. Financial product advice can only be obtained from a licenced financial adviser under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Note: DBA Lawyers presents monthly online SMSF training. For more details or to register, visit www.dbanetwork.com.au or call 03 9092 9400.
For more information regarding how DBA Lawyers can assist in your SMSF practice, visit www.dbalawyers.com.au.
By Bryce Figot ([email protected]) Special Counsel and Cassandra Hurley ([email protected]) Lawyers DBA Lawyers
DBA LAWYERS
26 August 2024
