4 ms·
Ah, right, no. "i.e." is an abbreviation for the Latin "id est", meaning "that is". "For example" would be "e.g.", ("exempli gratia" in Latin.) "E.g." is illu
by mbrookes 9y ago
Ah, right, no. "i.e." is an abbreviation for the Latin "id est", meaning "that is".
"For example" would be "e.g.", ("exempli gratia" in Latin.)
"E.g." is illustrative, whereas "i.e." is exhaustive.
I hadn't heard "i.e." expanded to "in example" before - that explains one source of misunderstanding (despite being grammatically incorrect in its own right).
Edit: It seems you've since been unfairly downvoted for explaining what you meant. Please folks, don't do that. I asked the question, and @fraserharris answered honestly.
- xenophonf 9y agoI forget where I picked this up, but I use the following to keep them straight: i.e. == in essence e.g. == example given
- ericleung 9y agoI can never remember the Latin, but in my mind, I usually substitute i.e. to mean "in essence" and e.g. as "e.g.xample" to remember which means which.