×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Useful Latin Abbreviations
6

Useful Latin Abbreviations

Useful Latin Abbreviations

2
(OP)
I know I am guilty of using EG instead of IE, and vice versa.  I thought we could start a running list of useful Latin terms and abbreviations that we use most commonly.  Add to the list as required, and be gentle with the corrections, I'm no latin expert.

c:     Short for circa, pronounced SIR-ka.  Used to show that a date is approximate: "Died c. 1860."

RE:    From in re, pronounced RAY.  Meaning "about" or "concerning": "Re your comment yesterday."


CF.:   From confer, pronounced cee-eff.  Used to compare something to something else, meaning to look at it with an eye to the issue at hand: "cf. page 234."

E.G.:  Short for exempli gratia, pronounced ee-gee.  Used to give examples, but does not guarantee a complete list: "domestic vehicles, e.g., Explorer, Jimmy, Focus."

I.E.:  Short for id est, pronounced eye-ee.  Used when explaining the nature of something (more authorative than e.g.):  "domestic vehicles, i.e., those from Ford, are the Explorer, Focus and Mustang."

PACE:  Means "With all due respect to" or "with the permission of", pronounced PAY-see or PAH-chay (less correct).  Used to express polite disagreement.

ET AL.:  Short for at alia or at alii, meaning "and others" or "and other people".  Can be used with people.

ETC.:  Short for et cetera, meaning "and the rest" or "and so forth".  Cannot be used with people.

Ray Reynolds
"Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons."
Popular Mechanics, forecasting the relentless march of science, 1949
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

I always thought "re" was short for "regarding".

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

3
MadMango, this site is very handy:
http://www.24hourtranslations.co.uk/lphrases.htm#I

And here are some off the wall phrases here including some nice bumper stickers: http://www.zippynet.com/pages/latin.htm

But what the first site shows is that not all latin tags are represented in common use by abreviations. Note also that some are more commonly used in lower case such as e.g. and i.e. and we should be careful not to deviate from the conventions.

Anyway, if one (especially an engineer) is going to use latin tags it rather defeats the object to use abreviations (except those commonly used in the language), unless total obscurity is sought.

On reflection I suppose using either abreviations or the full latin phrase probably means the same level of obscurity is reached, though using the full latin phrase is more polite as it saves people sitting there wondering what the abreviation stands for and whether they will look a complete dummy for asking.

But let's face it, Doctors, lawyers astonomers and botanists are well known for their latin - but not engineers. Some words and phrases do have latin roots but how many true engineering terms are actually in latin.

Every bit of dust in space has a latin or greek name, every plant or animal, even bacteria and every part of the body.

But now try and name all the parts of a car that have latin tags, or of any machine or tool or principal?

JMW
www.viscoanalyser.com
Eng-Tips: Pro bono publico, by engineers, for engineers.

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Mad:
Well, if Latin were English, all of the  suggested pronunciation were correct.

<nbucska@pcperipherals DOT com> subj: eng-tips

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations


sqdjlg, both abbreviations ibid. and ib. apply, and have the same meaning.

MadMango, some more familiar abbreviations:

A.D., in the year of the Lord
ad lib., ad libit., as desired, without restraint
a.m., before noon
do. ,for ditto, the aforesaid
et al., can also mean "and elsewhere' (as in "et alibi")
et seq., and the following
N.B., note well
p.a., per an., per ann., annually
Ph.D., Doctor of Philosophy
p.m., after noon
p.n.g., not acceptable (not welcome) person
Q.E.D., which was to be demonstrated
Q.E.F., which was to be done
R.I.P., rest in peace
viz., that is to say
vs., against

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Q.E.D.--> Quod Erat Demonstratum (please forgive the declination if it is incorrect.. I havent studied latin since 11th grade!)

Translates into "That which was to be demonstrated", and usually ends up at the end of a proof of some sort.

-Mark

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

I, (tongue in cheek) always thought that QED meant Quite Easily Done, because it was always at the end of the hardest problem examples presented in the text book.

HA!

E.G. translates literally, "such as".
I.E. translates literally, "that is"

They are commonly mixed and mis-matched.

"Latin killed the Romans, and now it is killing me"

rmw

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

QED= quod erat demonstrandum
"et al" is "and others", or so I always thought, from "et alia" (not much of an abbreviation).

Bung
Life is non-linear...

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

QED, op. cit. justkeepgiviner, June 11.

rmw

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Car parts Latinate? How about 'exhaust' = muffler. 'Radiator' 'Ignition'.
I spent a while in Indonesia and was interested to read the signs on the auto repair shops. Nearly everything was in an English variant except 'Spooring'. I deduce that it corresponds to tracking or alignment (I assume from Dutch).

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Yes, "Spur" is German for trace. I once visited a paper mill just outside Jakarta and when I saw the sign "Knalpot" outside an auto repair shop, I realised that most of Indonesia once was a Dutch colony. Knal = bang and pot = pot. I think they meant muffler.

Talking about Latin and abbreviations: The Swedish word for a car is "bil". It is derived from "automobile" and we dropped the first part. The Germans dropped the last part and use "auto" - as do many other languages.

I don't know if these words are abbreviations in the right sense, but they are Latin. Another Latin "abbreviation" is "bus", which comes from "omnibus" (for all). It is a good description of how buses are used; for all people (autobus), for all data (data bus), for all loads (bus bar).

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

And in the UK an auto is a "car" from "horseless carriage".

JMW
www.viscoanalyser.com
Eng-Tips: Pro bono publico, by engineers, for engineers.

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

PS To show that the Brits aren't completely illiterate, "bus" comes from "Omnibus"

JMW
www.viscoanalyser.com
Eng-Tips: Pro bono publico, by engineers, for engineers.

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Concerning jmw's remark, carriage comes from the Latin word "currus" meaning wagon (The Latin root still shows in the word for a small wagon = "cart"). So in its root, "car" stems from Latin. Also "automobile" ("auto" = "by itself" + "mobilis" = "being able to move") originates from Latin.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Gambro, I think the word for wagon in Latin is "carrus" not "currus", while "curro" means I run. Am I right ?

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

My favorite latin phrase is usually lost on non-engineers.  I wonder why?

"Illegitimus Non-Carborundum"  =  "Don't let the bastards grind you down"

- - -Dennyd

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

I haven't "Illegitimus Non-Carborundum" ...

BUT, the Shop Mechanics are "pecking me to death" like the early worm in the chicken coop.

The " Basic Level of Understanding" bar has been set abnormally low for this group!

Any Latin for that?

Rerig

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

rerig,
Maybe Latin for limbostick would do.

Jesus is THE life,
Leonard

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

I remember two phrases from Latin:

I Orcum. (The imperative to go to the Underworld.)

Rutus audiorium. (Stick it in your ear.)

Enjoy!

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Sorry 25362, the spelling "currus" is definitely correct. You are incidently also correct in stating that "curro" = "I run/am running". The infinitive is "currere" = "to run". Thus "currus" literally means "something which can run or move forward".

So my seven years (!) of Latin at school was not altogether in vain!

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

To gambro: thanks. But is the spelling "carrus" (for wagon) wrong ? Kindly revert.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Gambro, it is possible that we are both right and

carrus/carrum: wagon, car
currum: racing chariot
cisum: a two-wheeled vehicle


Again thanks for any comment.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Yes 25362, I believe you are right about the racing chariot. It's been a long time since I went to school.

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Another abbreviation: e.c. = exempli causa (Cicero). Not much in use, but it has the same meaning as e.g. =exempli gratia (Quintilianus).

RE: Useful Latin Abbreviations

Quando Omni Flunkus Moriti

perhaps the best latin ever.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources