Welcome to Writing Tip Tuesday, the Abbreviations edition. This is the first in a series of posts pulled from my free guide “On Not Writing Badly.” You can download the whole thing by filling out this form, or, if you’d rather not subscribe to my email list, you can simply check back here over the next several Tuesdays for a regular dose of word nerdery.
Abbreviations
Acronyms
Do not use acronyms without fully identifying them first.
Example: The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) dates back to 1994.
Scholarly Degrees
Degrees are generally abbreviated without periods. When following a personal name, they are set off by commas.
Example: Bob Cho received his BA from Duke University
Example: Katie Powers, P.E., will visit the class.
E.g.
The abbreviation “e.g.” is used in place of “for example.” It is not italicized and does require the use of a comma to set it apart from the text.
Example: I like to play cards, e.g., hearts and crazy eights.
(This sentence indicates that these are just two of the many games I like to play.)
Et cetera
Et cetera literally translates to “and other things” and is abbreviated with “etc.” It should not be used to refer to people. Do not use “and” before “etc.” Additional punctuation is not needed if it falls at the end of a sentence, but if you use it in the middle of a sentence, follow it with a comma.
Example: The colors of the rainbow are red, orange, yellow, etc.
Example: I brought my pencils, pens, etc., to the desk.
I.e.
The abbreviation “i.e.” is used in place of “in other words. It is not italicized and does require the use of a comma to set it apart from the text.
Example: I like to play cards, i.e., hearts and crazy eights.
(This sentence indicates that these are the only two games I like to play.)
Scholarly Degrees
Degrees are generally abbreviated without periods. When following a personal name, they are set off by commas.
Example: Bob Cho received his BA from Duke University.
Example: Katie Powers, JD, will visit the class.
States
In formal writing, the names of states and countries should always be spelled out. The exceptions are in addresses, and the “DC” in Washington DC.
Versus
The word “versus” indicates that two entities are opposed. It should be abbreviated with “vs.”
In legal documents (i.e., in papers prepared by lawyers) it is usually abbreviated with “v.”
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