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Someone I know got a interview call letter part of which read as this:

.. you are requested to appear for the ibid interview ..

What does ibid mean in this context?

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  • It says in the dictionary that ibid is the abbreviation for ibidem, which is an adverb. In the sentence, the word is used as an adjective. Maybe it's a different word?
    – Lester Nubla
    Feb 13, 2014 at 7:03

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I believe that in this case it means the person who wrote the letter does not know the proper usage of ibid.. The proper usage of ibid. is in a bibliography or footnote to refer to the previous citation.

From the context, I would assume that the writer of the letter mentions the interview in a prior sentence, and now is trying to recall the same information.

For example:

We will be interviewing you on our show "Brightly Colored Morning Extravaganza."
You are requested to appear for ibid interview on Thursday at 7 AM.

Unfortunately, this seems to be the work of a pseudo-intellectual. I know this because, as the adage goes, it takes one to know one!

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  • Thanks, I'll accept this, but will hear what others have to say.
    – Prasanth
    Feb 13, 2014 at 7:25
  • 2
    That seems quite reasonable.
    – David M
    Feb 13, 2014 at 7:27
  • maybe the company is called iBid?
    – Cruncher
    Feb 13, 2014 at 18:53
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Ibid. is an abbreviation for the Latin word ibidem, which means “in the same place”. It's commonly used in endnote/footnote citations, where it means “The information cited came from the same book as the previous citation.“

It's unusual (and, I think, ungrammatical) to use ibid as an adjective, but in this context, I'd assume the writer intended it to mean “above-mentioned” or “aforementioned”. That is, your quotation is referring to an interview which the writer had described slightly earlier in the letter.

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  • Thanks! I left out the actual Latin definition from my answer. (I would feel wrong editing it in now!)
    – David M
    Feb 13, 2014 at 7:57
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Going out on a limb, I see someone who tried to replace the typical Indian-English use of "the same" or "same" by something they thought was "more proper" English.

As a result, they managed to create something that is not only ungrammatical, but also semantically puzzling.

I would have no problems understanding this line in an Indian-English context if it were written as:

We have planned an interview [...] and you are requested to appear for the same.

Interestingly, this is why I am weary of questions asking for replacements of standard (localized) expression, like "what is better alternative for do the needful.

Someone looked up an alternative for "the same" and found "ibid.", which can indeed be an alternative in some cases.

Thinking it looked better than the "Indianism", they ended up mangling their sentence :)

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  • "the same" is not just Anglo-Indian terminology - IIRC, there is a phrase in Anglican (CofE) liturgy which reads something like "and defend us in the same", and that certainly predates the introduction of English as a common-use language in India.
    – user65745
    Feb 13, 2014 at 11:10
  • I'm certainly not saying it originated in India, I have no idea about that. Its current day use is quite tell-tale InE, though. Actually, there are quite some modern InE expressions that are simply considered old-fashioned or even obsolete in AmE or BrE (thrice?).
    – oerkelens
    Feb 13, 2014 at 12:41
  • This usage of "the same" is used in formal American English.
    – David M
    Feb 13, 2014 at 14:55
  • I recall seeing it, but I never saw it being used quite as often as I saw it in formal and informal InE :)
    – oerkelens
    Feb 13, 2014 at 15:31
  • I agree that anaphoric "the same" evokes InE in a present-day context. However, the two quotes that come to mind are from the King James Version, Ps. 113:3, and from Bret Harte's "Plain Language from Truthful James."
    – Gwillim Law
    Feb 13, 2014 at 19:30

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