Grammar tip of the day

[kate]

Because I use these A LOT in my technical writing, thought it might be useful for others out there.

i.e. = "that is" (or, "in other words")
e.g. = "for example"

Memory trick: Imagine that i.e. means “in essence,” and e.g. sounds like "egg sample."

Also, since I'm thinking of it, American dialogue attribution punctuation/capitalization, which only has a few variations but is something people get endlessly wrong. (For American English, punctuation is always within the quotes. Commas before attribution (she said), periods before non-attribution (actions other than saying, asking, exclaiming, etc.).)

"I say," she said.
"I say!" she exclaimed.
"I say?" she asked.
"I say," she said, "this is ridiculous."
"I say." She turned to me and stuck her tongue out. "This is ridiculous."

Comments

[msilverstar]

I've actually taken to removing i.e. and e.g. from my writing, as they are obscure enough to confuse readers without formal education in English grammar, and ESL. I don't want to force them to stop and figure out what is going on, it screws up the flow of the information. So now I just use "for example", and "that is," which are not as nice but easier for many people.

[kate]

That is super smart. And I should probably do it, except my boss is always riding me on how my SOPs don't sound formal enough. (Hilariously, she used i.e. incorrectly.)