e.g.
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also Appendix:Variations of "eg"
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[edit] English
[edit] Alternative forms
[edit] Etymology
Abbreviation of Latin exemplī grātiā (“for example”). Gratiā here is in the ablative case which is translated into the prepositional phrase "for the sake". Exempli is a genitive case noun meaning "of example". Therefore, the full phrase is "for the sake of example".[1] Previously abbreviated to ex. gr.
[edit] Pronunciation
- IPA: /iːdʒiː/
- It is sometimes pronounced as for example.
[edit] Adverb
Literally, “for the sake of example”. Used to introduce an example or list of examples to illustrate what is being discussed.
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- Asia is a large continent, which contains many large nations (e.g., China, India, and Russia).
[edit] Usage notes
- The list of examples following e.g. should not be exhaustive[2] (in that case, i.e. should be used) and should not be followed by et cetera or etc. as this is a tautology. (Tautologies do have their place, but use etc. in this context with care.)
- Opinion is mixed about whether this term should be italicized as although it is Latin, it has become part of standard English, and whether it should be written with a separating space "e. g." as it was originally two separate words.
- In American English a comma should follow e.g. For example:
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- Female marsupials (e.g., kangaroos, opossums) have a pouch.
- In British English no comma should follow e.g. For example:
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- Female marsupials (e.g. kangaroos, opossums) have a pouch.
- A punctuation mark always precedes e.g.
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- I like sweet foods, e.g. chocolate. (cf. I like sweet foods, for example chocolate.)
- I like sweet foods (e.g. chocolate and marzipan) and eat them often.
[edit] Translations
abbreviation for “for example”
[edit] References
- ^ 2007, John C. Traupman, The New College Latin and English Dictionary, ISBN 9780553590128.
- ^ 2002, Sir Ernest Gowers, The Complete Plain Words, ISBN 9781567922035.
[edit] Anagrams
[edit] Latin
[edit] Abbreviation
e.g.
