We monitor the search keywords people use when they land on our site, and one popular search is how to use e.g. and i.e. properly.

E.g. means "for example." It is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase exempli gratia. Use e.g. when you are listing examples after a general statement.

        She liked all types of music, e.g., rock, country, and rap.

I.e. means "that is" or "in other words." It is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase id est. Use i.e. to explain or elaborate on a point.

        She liked all types of music, i.e., she didn't limit herself to one genre.

Naturally, the next question is how to properly punctuate these abbreviations. The Chicago Manual of Style advises writers to punctuate the abbreviations as we have in the examples above: Use lower-case letters with periods, followed by a comma.

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