Hello and welcome to Academic Word of the Week!

Today we’re going to be talking about something we’ve never discussed before in any depth: abbreviations. In particular, there are two abbreviations, commonly used in academic writing, which are often confused:

1. i.e.

This abbreviation stands for the Latin expression ‘id est’, which in English simply means ‘that is’. We use i.e. to define something just mentioned more precisely.

Example sentence: Every student of genetics learns the two fundamental approaches in the area, i.e., reverse genetics and forward genetics.

2. e.g.

This abbreviation stands for the Latin expression ‘exempli gratia’, which in English means ‘for example’. It is used to give a limited number of examples of something just mentioned.

Example sentence: These products are imported from a great number many countries, e.g., Italy and Germany.

As you can see, these two abbreviations have quite different functions and cannot therefore be used interchangeably.

Please also note the following regarding punctuation:
• Neither abbreviation is italicized.
• Each letter in both abbreviations is followed by periods/full stops.
• Both abbreviations are followed by a comma in American English, but not in British English.

Have a great weekend and see you next week!

The ELCP Team