Pimp my English | Using e.g.

By Anna Malczyk

What it means
The abbreviation e.g. stands for “exempli gratia” in Latin, which means “for the sake of example” or, more simply, “for example”. It is a direct synonym for “for example” and can technically be used whenever you indicate an example.

When to use “e.g.”
The expression “e.g.” should never be used in formal, polite writing – in these cases, use the full phrase “for example” instead. However, it can be used in informal texts (like in-company documents) and other casual writing.

Punctuation and grammar
 “e.g.” is always written in lower case, even at the beginning of a sentence (like here). Avoid this funny construction by rewriting your sentence so that the examples come later, or just write out “For example” in full.
 “e.g.” must be preceded by a comma if it appears in the middle of the sentence.
•    Marketers have many tasks, e.g. phoning contacts and writing emails.

The examples given after “e.g.” should follow the normal rules of grammar for listing several objects.
•    Students can do many things, e.g. read notes, watch videos and take quizzes.

Never use “e.g.” and “etc.” in the same sentence! Since “e.g.” implies that you are only giving a few examples, and “etc.” means that you are including other similar things, this is redundant.
•    Students can do many things, e.g. read notes, watch videos and take quizzes, etc.
•    This actually means: Students can do many things, for example read notes, watch videos and take quizzes, and other examples.

This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution license.