The abbreviations “i.e.” and “e.g.” come from Latin, but they remain widely used in the English language. Despite their prevalence, a lot of folks don’t know how to use them correctly or use them interchangeably. In truth, “i.e.” and “e.g.” have their own unique meanings. Thankfully, it’s easy to tell them apart so long as you know a little about their etymological roots.
The abbreviation “i.e.” comes from the Latin id est, meaning “in other words.” The abbreviation “e.g.,” on the other hand, stands for the Latin exempli gratia, which roughly translates to “for instance.” In practice, you should use “i.e.” when attempting to add a bit of clarification, whereas “e.g.” is better suited for listing out examples. As a helpful mnemonic device, think of the “i” in “i.e.” as the start of “in other words,” and the “e” in “e.g.” as “example.”
Here’s a hypothetical situation: You’re texting someone about an upcoming trip to Europe, and want to give them some details. Either of these texts would be grammatically acceptable:
I plan to visit many European countries, i.e., I have a very full itinerary.
I plan to visit many European countries, e.g., Portugal, Spain, and France.
In the first sentence, the phrase following “i.e.” reiterates the message of the preceding phrase. It could also be read as, “I plan to visit many European countries; in other words, I have a very full itinerary.” Subbing in “for example” doesn’t work as well — “I plan to visit many European countries; for example, I have a very full itinerary” — so we know “i.e.” is the correct abbreviation. In the second sentence, however, “for example” makes more sense before the list of countries than “in other words,” so we know “e.g.” is correct. Also note that a comma always follows both of the abbreviations and their requisite periods in the sentences.
This should clear up how to differentiate between “i.e.” and “e.g.” — but you may still be wondering why you should use “e.g.” instead of “ex.” (an abbreviation of the word “example”). The main reason is that “ex.” can also be a shortened version of other words such as “executive” or “exact,” and it may not always mean “example.” But “e.g.” always means exempli gratia — the Latin avoids any confusion.
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