Commonly Confused Words: i.e./e.g./such as

Should your clarifying parenthetical use i.e. or e.g.? Does it matter?

i.e. (Latin for “id est”):

• The abbreviation i.e. means “that is” an

• d is used to clarify or rephrase something: “The defendant was found guilty of a serious crime, i.e., first-degree murder, and was sentenced to life in prison.”  

e.g. (Latin for “exempli gratia”):

• The abbreviation e.g. means “for example” and is used to introduce examples that illustrate a category or concept: “The prosecution presented various types of evidence during the trial, e.g., fingerprints, DNA samples, and video footage from surveillance cameras.”

Such as:

• The phrase such as has the same meaning as e.g. and thus can be used interchangeably without modifying the sentence’s meaning.

Rule: If you want to CLARIFY, use i.e., if you want to EXEMPLIFY, use e.g. or such as.

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