Who knew two little letters could cause so much confusion? Yet, the mere presence of e.g. or i.e. is scary enough to make some people’s legs start to shake.

I.e. and e.g. are both abbreviations for Latin terms. I.e. stands for id est and means “that is.” E.g. stands for exempli gratia, which means roughly “for example.”

So how are you going to remember the difference between the two? With this little trick:

• i.e. –> starts with i = in other words
• e.g. –> starts with e = example

Now that you know how to remember what each abbreviation means, let’s take a look at some examples.

E.g. means “for example,” so you use it to introduce an example:

Sam loves to eat fruit, e.g. strawberries and bananas.

Tom visited several countries during his world trip, e.g. Spain, Egypt and Peru.

With both of these sentences, you are reading some examples rather than getting a full list. I haven’t named every fruit that Sam loves to eat nor every country that Tom visited during his trip. This is how the abbreviation e.g. works – you are giving some examples to illustrate what you are talking about.

I.e. means “in other words,” so you use it to introduce a further clarification:

Sam loves to eat fruit, i.e. strawberries and bananas.

Tom visited several countries during his world trip, i.e. Spain, Egypt and Peru.

Because I used i.e., you know that the only fruits that Sam really loves are strawberries and bananas (he is not such a big fruit fan after all) and that the only countries Tom visited during his world trip, were Spain, Egypt and Peru.

What about that extra comma I sometimes see?

Tom visited several countries during his world trip, e.g., Spain, Egypt and Peru.

Sometimes you might see a comma after i.e. and e.g. and if you have tried to do the same, you might have found that your spell checker freaked out and put an ugly squiggle under it. I personally don’t put an extra comma after i.e. and e.g. but several style guides (a set of standards for the writing and design of documents, either for general use or for a specific publication, organization or field) recommend adding one. I’ll leave the choice up to you.

Answers from Saturday’s Post on Its or It’s

1. It’s time to give the cat its dinner.

2. The spacecraft fired its rockets as it approached its landing site.

3. When it’s likely to rain, it’s best to take an umbrella.

4. It’s fascinating to watch the cat washing its kittens.

5. Before riding your bicycle, it’s a good idea to check its brakes.