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14Why do English use Latin abbreviations anyway? In norwegian we use "dvs." as short for "det vil si" ("that is"), and "f.eks." as short for "for eksempel" ("for example"), and we would never pronounce it as an abbrevation (unless you're trying to sound geeky).– Stein G. StrindhaugCommented Mar 21, 2011 at 11:33
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25@Stein: In English, it's used to sound smart.– endolithCommented Apr 25, 2011 at 21:57
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5@Stein -- Latin abbreviations are a holdover from the period where Latin was a standard part of the curriculum. I.e., e.g, and even etc. were common abbreviation used by scholars for centuries. We still invent and use abbreviations. Now we have lol and wtf.– Jay ElstonCommented May 22, 2011 at 3:55
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8As an exception, etc is pronounced et cetera.– PitarouCommented Dec 23, 2011 at 12:09
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6Interesting, if this question was asked today it would be closed as general reference and would get a dozen downvotes. The ELU community has become a lot more haughty and aggressive– Armen ԾիրունյանCommented May 22, 2013 at 20:58
7 Answers
i.e. stands for id est (Latin), which means "that is". You use it to link in a deeper explanation about something. Pronounce it "eye - ee".
e.g. stands for exempli gratia (also Latin), which means "for example". You use it to link in an example of a more generic term. Pronounce it "ee - jee"
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71Can I read them out as, 'that is' and 'for example'? (When there's some audience)– LenikCommented Aug 12, 2010 at 23:18
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22It depends on who your audience is. Children, I think, would be distracted with the abbreviations. Educated adults wouldn't mind, though.– ChrisCommented Aug 12, 2010 at 23:27
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35I have lived my entire adult life thinking "i.e." stood for "in essence". Thanks for this! Commented Aug 13, 2010 at 0:42
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7@Paul I have a friend who thought e.g. stood for “example given.” At least the mnemonic would prevent inappropriate substitution of i.e. Commented Jun 5, 2011 at 19:57
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13@Malfist EXEMPLI GRATIA does not mean free example, it means "for the sake of an example". One shouldn't mistake the Latin noun grātia (grace, thankfulness, sake, present only in Romance languages) for the Latin adjective gratis (free, present both in the Romance and the Germanic languages). Commented Sep 22, 2013 at 7:46
For i.e. I usually say "that is", occasionally "eye-ee".
For e.g. I always say "for example".
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When I was in college, one of my philosophy professors instructed us to use translated English for abbreviated or initialized latinisms when reading a text aloud. I would agree that in most cases you should speak the translated English rather than speaking the letters of the initialization.
- i.e. is used for clarification and should be spoken "that is". While most English speakers will recognize the meaning of "eye ee" when spoken, saying "that is" is clearer.
- e.g. is used for providing one or many examples and should be spoken "for example".
While i.e. and e.g. are relatively common, other abbreviated or initialized latinisms, such as viz., are less frequent and their English translation should certainly be provided when reading from a text that includes a latinism.
For example, take the following quote from Plato:
Perfect wisdom has four parts, viz., wisdom, the principle of doing things aright; justice, the principle of doing things equally in public and private; fortitude, the principle of not flying danger, but meeting it; and temperance, the principle of subduing desires and living moderately.
When reading that quote aloud, the translation for viz. should be provided.
- Incorrect:
- "Perfect wisdom has four parts, viz, wisdom, the principle..."
- "Perfect wisdom has four parts, videlicet, wisdom, the principle..."
- Correct:
- "Perfect wisdom has four parts, namely, wisdom, the principle..."
- "Perfect wisdom has four parts, that is to say, wisdom, the principle..."
Speaking the translation for initialized and abbreviated latinisms provides greater clarity for the audience than simply speaking the initials or the latin.
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3Plato was Greek and lived at a time when the Romans had little (if any) influence on Greek language or culture. I wonder how he came to use the abbreviation "viz." :-) Commented May 22, 2011 at 4:07
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4+1 But how will blowhards satisfy their pomposity needs without liberal seasoning with vocalized latinisms? Commented Jun 5, 2011 at 20:01
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3@Greg, remember "Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur," which translates into "Whatever is said in Latin sounds profound." Commented Oct 20, 2011 at 12:01
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1This is the correct answer: you pronounce them as their English equivalents.– tchrist ♦Commented Sep 30, 2012 at 20:22
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+1, I have been pronouncing 'viz' as 'viz'. 'namely' is appropriate. Thanks for sharing the correct usage.– AshwinCommented Dec 28, 2012 at 5:51
Just pronounce the letters: "Eye eee" and "eee gee".
I have never met anyone who actually said "id est" and "exempli gratia", which is what they really stand for.
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17@Ismail: They're pronounced the same, and "gee" is even an English word (merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gee). Either will do.– mmyersCommented Aug 13, 2010 at 12:59
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I can't believe this wasn't addressed in the Oatmeal Comic but I usually say the letters or replace it with "for example" (and now, thanks to the comic, I'll replace it with "in other words" instead and use e.g. when I mean "for example").
and as for the pronunciation of the Latin:
i.e. = id est
e.g. =
IgzemplI gra:tI
(NB a: is pronounced like the "a" in car or can't)
but remember - as has been mentioned here; it's much better practice to use the English long-forms in speech:
i.e. - "that is" / "or"
e.g. - "for example"
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2What happened to the "a" at the end of "gratia"? Is it not pronounced? (I'm a beginner to Latin, especially pronunciation which I haven't been paying much attention to…) Commented Nov 5, 2010 at 20:47
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1A more modern an common (British) pronunciation would be {gra:tI} However classical Latin would retain the "a:" sound at the end - {gra:tIa:}– Adam FGCommented Nov 7, 2010 at 15:33
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1Which pronunciation are you trying to indicate here? a) reconstructed Latin pronunciation b) restored pronunciation of Latin for English speakers c) traditional English pronunciation of Latin? As it is, your indicated pronunciations are an inconsistent hybrid of b and c (you indicate a voiced /gz/ rather than /ks/ for the "x", but a broad /a:/ for "a" and monophthongal /I/ for "i").– herissonCommented Jun 30, 2015 at 15:42
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@herisson, good points. And is the first e in exempli really pronounced /I/? Only asking because I've never heard any civilized Latin-based language speakers pronounce an e like that. Commented Dec 31, 2022 at 22:25
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@SO_fix_the_vote_sorting_bug: You probably wouldn't have heard it: English speakers rarely have occasion to pronounce exempli gratia as part of an English sentence. But just as English speakers often pronounce /I/ in the first syllable of example and exemplary, it would also be typical in an English pronunciation of Latin (the type of pronunciation whereby "stare decisis" rhymes with "vary the crisis") to use /ɪ/ in the first syllable of exempli gratia.– herissonCommented Jan 1, 2023 at 2:28
Latin abbreviations
- i.e. = that is, such as, or "in other words"
- e.g = for example
- et. al. = and others (i get a lot of strange looks when I use this)
NB. = nota bene; Note well (and this one as well... I have no idea why this one is capitalized)
etc. = et cetera ("and other things", or "and so forth")
and yes when reading aloud I just use the translation to avoid confusion
Pronuciation: just say the letters for most cases; except etc. and et cetera are pronounced the same.
et. al. is pronounced et all
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This doesn't answer the question about pronunciation. Commented Jun 30, 2015 at 12:23
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