>>80737944It's because "A Unicorn" actually IS the correct way to say it.
This trips up ESLs the easiest (because it even trips up native speakers), but U only gets the "an" treatment when it's a making a vowel sound. For example:
>An uneasy allianceThe "U" in "Uneasy" is making the Vowel U sound. Here's how we teach it to the children, with this phonic reminder:
>U, uh, Up. But when the letter "U" is used in "Unicorn," it's not making the vowel sound of U, but instead is making the consonant sound, "You." If the "U" makes the sound of the word "You," it is treated as the non-vowel version, and you can tell because of the way your mouth moves when saying "U" in "Uneasy" versus "Unicorn." Your mouth starts opened already in "Uneasy," but you need to make the Y sound in "Unicorn" before hitting the proper U vowel sound.
