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In Hungarian, when there's a dot both inside and outside parentheses at the end of a sentence, we write it as follows:

Sok állatom van (kutya, macska stb.).

(Meaning: I've got many animals [dogs, cats, etc.])

I'm not sure though how do we write it in English.

  1. I've got many animals (dogs, cats, etc.).
  2. I've got many animals. (dogs, cats, etc.)
  3. I've got many animals (dogs, cats, etc.)
  4. I've got many animals (dogs, cats, etc).
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  • 4
    Etc. is not an acronym, it's an abbreviation.
    – Alenanno
    Apr 28, 2011 at 9:51
  • @Alenanno: Thanks, I often confuse acronyms with abbreviations. Corrected.
    – alexia
    Apr 28, 2011 at 9:56
  • Number 1 in the OP's list is correct, except that plural examples would look more idiomatic: "I've got many animals (dogs, cats, etc.)."
    – The Raven
    Apr 28, 2011 at 10:46
  • @TheRaven: You're right, fixing it.
    – alexia
    Apr 28, 2011 at 11:10

1 Answer 1

42

The dot in etc. is the dot for the abbreviation; the solutions are:

  • If the abbreviation is outside of parentheses, you use only one dot, because it serves for both the abbreviation and the sentence-period:

I've got many animals, such as dogs, cats, etc.

I've got many animals: dogs, cats, etc.

  • If it's inside the parentheses, like in this case, then you should use two dots, since one is for the abbreviation, the other is for the sentence:

I've got many animals (dogs, cats, etc.).

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    how does this answer the OP's question? "Attachment A" does not get a period, so it's not relevant.
    – tenfour
    Apr 28, 2011 at 10:01
  • You're right. I'm editing it.
    – Alenanno
    Apr 28, 2011 at 10:07
  • 1
    @Alenanno: Can you provide reference to your answer? This could also help for future lookups regarding similar issues
    – Dror
    Sep 4, 2013 at 9:04
  • 4
    References include the Languages Portal of Canada and the Chicago Manual of Style
    – Alicja Z
    Apr 1, 2014 at 21:54
  • 1
    I am not sure if this applies to English (but I feel it may apply), but in French, you can avoid the last period if there's one inside the parenthesis : “etc.)” is acceptable as much as “etc.).”: grammarbook.com/punctuation/parens.asp
    – avetisk
    Aug 17, 2016 at 19:21

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