Is it correct to say:
"I'll send you this file per E-Mail"?
Or
"Please send me this file per E-Mail"?
I know most people say "I'll send you this file by E-Mail" or "Please send me this file by E-Mail".
Is "per E-Mail" also correct?
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Send it per fax.– NoahCommented Jun 11, 2014 at 15:56
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It sounds idiosyncratic to me, unless you have requested this file in which case it sounds like a valid ellipsis for per (your) E-Mail. I think, even then, it is still archaic per (your) question.– Elliott FrischCommented Jun 11, 2014 at 17:48
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e-mail (or email) should not be capitalized there.– andiCommented Jun 11, 2014 at 18:33
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3No, using per this way does not mean by; it means according to.– tchrist ♦Commented Jun 11, 2014 at 20:02
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1 Answer
Yes, you could, but I think it's better to say via email. Although per has an archaic meaning of "by means of", it's not widely used.
Edit: As Jon Hanna points out in his comment below, "per" often shows up in "as per" (meaning "according to") in business language, as well as meaning "for each", and some of us (perhaps most of us) may not recognize either the meaning or the correctness of "per email" right off.
You likely want business language to be clear and unambiguous, and for there to be no question as to the correctness, so it's generally best to avoid this particular usage.
answered Jun 11, 2014 at 14:33
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4+1. My "reading brain" finds itself trying to apply another meaning of per and flailing at it. I think it is wanting to favour how per is used in "as per my email". Commented Jun 11, 2014 at 14:42
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@Jon: +1 for your comment, but I'm not willing to upvote the answer itself because to my ear it sounds ridiculous to use per - which as OED says is Now rare (chiefly archaic) - in the context of something as modern as email. So for me, "Yes, you could" doesn't quite cut it. Commented Jun 11, 2014 at 16:08
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1@FumbleFingers I think we're differing on just how we're reading the could here. Because, well, they could indeed, they really shouldn't though. Commented Jun 11, 2014 at 16:16
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1@FumbleFingers I've run into this usage in the wild, though it sounds antiquated and a bit jarring next to email (or even E-Mail). Note that "sent per airmail" and "sent per messenger" get modest numbers of Google hits. I do think it's a correct English phrase, as the title asks, but it's not an particularly good one to use for this purpose. Commented Jun 11, 2014 at 16:26
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Spehro: Well, I'm certainly not downvoting your "weak endorsement" of the usage. But I'd hazard a guess that most actual instances of sent per email are from less-than-competent writers, rather than deliberate choices made by people who're familiar with the dated/archaic usage. So I wouldn't encourage them by saying you could use it. But @Jon's 2nd comment is crucial here. Commented Jun 11, 2014 at 17:47