in an alphabetical or alphabetical order????

[ostap77]

"What comes after Nevada in an alphabetical listing of all 50 states?"


My dictionary says it's in alphabetical order. I've heard and seen in an alphabetical order, is it correct?

"I have a list of references and I need to list then in an alphabetical order, how can I do this?"

 

[vil]

New Hampshire

List of 50 States and capitals of the USA in alphabetical order with abbreviations will help teach you the …

 

[Raymott]

"What comes after Nevada in an alphabetical listing of all 50 states?"


My dictionary says it's in alphabetical order. I've heard and seen in an alphabetical order, is it correct?

"I have a list of references and I need to list then in an alphabetical order, how can I do this?"

I'm not sure that you've quoted the right words.
My dictionary says it's in alphabetical order. It would be; most dictionaries are.
My dictionary says it's "in alphabetical order." It says that the correct term is "in alphabetical order."
I also assume you mean "I've heard and seen the phrase 'in an alphabetical order'", rather than that you see and hear things in an alphabetical order.

In English, there is only one alphabetical order (two, if you count descending as well as ascending.) But your example sentence reads, "in an alphabetical listing", which is not the same thing. There can be many alphabetical listings of various things, but they all use the same alphabetical order.

So, are you asking how you list references in an alphabetical order? If so, your last question shouldn't be in quotes.

 

[mykwyner]

"What comes after Nevada in an alphabetical listing of all 50 states?"

In the above sentence you are writing about a listing which would take the indefinite article. Inserting the adjective alphabetical in front of listing changes the article to an. Alphabetical order is an idiomatic noun phrase that usually does not take an article.