Formal writing Types of abbreviations

Abbreviations e.g., i.e., etc.

The abbreviations "e.g." (exempli gratia = for example) and "i.e." (id est = that is; in other words) are read as full words of their English equivalents: "e.g." is read as "for example"; "i.e." is read as "that is".

The abbreviation "etc." (pronounced "et cetera") means "and others; and so on". Note that "and" should not be used before "etc." – the meaning of "etc." already includes "and" ("et" means "and").

Stylebooks recommend using these abbreviations in parentheses; English equivalents are preferable in formal writing.

Examples with "i.e." and "that is": Homographs (i.e., words with the same spelling) are listed in dictionaries as separate entries. Compound words, that is, words consisting of two or more roots, may have variants of spelling.

Example with "etc.": Illustrations (photographs, maps, drawings, etc.) are in the final part of this book.

Examples with "e.g." and "for example" can be found in this material (for example, in "Spelling notes" above).

Acronyms in formal text

Official abbreviations of the names of companies and organizations in the form of acronyms (for example, BP, GM, MTV, NBA, NBC, NFL, VOA, WHO) can be used in formal texts of general character after indicating the full names of companies and organizations.

Stylebooks recommend writing out the full name, with the abbreviated name in parentheses, when it appears in the text for the first time. For example: British Petroleum (BP); GM (General Motors); World Health Organization (WHO). Then, if the abbreviated name is repeated in the text, it can be used without the full name.

If the abbreviated names of companies and organizations are well known (for example, BBC, CNN, IBM, NASA, NATO, UN, UNESCO), their full names may be omitted in text. (Learners of English should have a list of common abbreviations, including well-known acronyms.)

Note: Acronyms and full names of companies and organizations are neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks. For example: She worked as an office clerk at IBM.

Other acronyms are generally used in the same way. Some acronyms are considered to be well known; their full names may be omitted in text. For example: CD, DNA, DVD, FM, GMT, IQ, MP3, PDF, UFO, Wi-Fi. Some acronyms are more recognizable than the phrases from which they were formed (for example, DNA, IQ, MP3).

Nevertheless, a list of abbreviations and their full forms at the end of the material in which they are used can be very helpful, especially for learners of English.

(Read more about acronyms in "Acronyms" and "Spelling notes" above.)