When to Use “Ie” and “Eg”
Before LOL, TLDR, and STFU came along, we had other acronyms that helped us communicate ideas quickly and easily. They are still useful to us because they still help us communicate ideas quickly and easily. They are ie and eg and are not the same thing.
Those.
Those. stands for “id est” in Latin, which means “that is” or “in other words.” When you use ie, you explain what you mean differently. You clarify.
Need a mnemonic trick to help you remember? Imagine that ie means essentially.
Examples of
- I am a perfectionist when it comes to my work, which means this project can take me time.
- I only packed my carry-on luggage on vacation (i.e. I only took a couple of outfits with me).
- She is a vegetarian; those. she will not eat animal products.
After “i.e.” there must be a comma followed by a qualifying statement. What comes before it (comma, semicolon, em dash) depends on what the abbreviation is entering or how much you want to emphasize it. You can also include it in parentheses. The same goes for, for example,
for instance
For example, in Latin it means “example of grace”, which means “for example”. For example, it means that you are giving one or more possibilities, but this is not a complete list.
Need a mnemonic trick to help you remember? You can imagine that the letter “E”, for example, stands for “Example”.
Examples of
- My kids watch a lot of cartoons that annoy me, for example, “Kayu”.
- There are several festivals in my city every fall, such as the Apple Festival and Oktoberfest.
- Remember to bring your pool essentials (such as sunscreen and a towel).
What about etc.?
You are probably already using it correctly, but it is worth noting that etc. – short for “and so on” – does not replace IE. Or, for example. Instead, etc. Means “and everything else.” Usually (but not always) it appears at the end of a sentence and means that you include all other elements in the category.
If you can replace etc. with “etc.”, you are using it correctly.
Example : The buffet offered sandwiches, soup, salad, rolls, etc.
(Never put an “and” in front of etc.; this will be superfluous, for example, “and and everything else.”)
When everything else fails and you’re still not sure what to do, for example, or for example, stick with “other words” and “for example.” This is fine too.