min'cellanea

話說，我已經亂用 "i.e." 和 "e.g." 很久了，總以為兩個都是「例如」, "for example" 的意思，不知道大家有沒有跟我一樣的錯覺。不過，在去年九月的某一天，我突然心血來潮想把所有的英文縮寫的原本意思查個明白，才發現這兩個其實是有些不同的。

為什麼今天又再提起呢？

因為前兩天，實驗室的白人博士生 V 突然冒出這個問題：

"What's the difference between i.e. and e.g.?"

然後另一個研究生 N 就回答：

"i.e." is "that is", "e.g." is "for example."

好啦！其實我沒聽到確實的問題，但是我聽到 N 這樣回答，所以我猜V 應該是這樣問的吧！聽到的時候，我心裡還OS 說：嘻，原來有人跟我一樣，"i.e.", "e.g." 分不清楚喔！真有趣。

其實兩個都是拉丁語的縮寫，而類似的縮寫也常常被用在生活中，下面列了幾個常看到的。


i.e.: [Latin] id est (that is)
e.g.: [Latin] exempli gratia (for example)
etc: [Latin] et cetera (and the rest, and so forth)
N.B.: [Latin] nota bene (note well, special attention should be paid to something)
P.S.: [Latin] post scriptum (written after, a note appended to a letter after the signature)
vs.: [Latin] versus (against)
ca.: [Latin] circa (approximately, about)
cf.: [Latin] confer (compare)

FYI: for your information
aka: also known as
ASAP: as soon as possible

RSVP: [French] répondez s'il vous plaît (please reply)
CV: [French] curriculum vitae (resumé [French] ; a summary of your academic and work history)

Other common used Latin phrases:

per se: in itself; for its own sake. Simply as such; in its own nature without reference to its relation.
per annum: by the year; annually.
pro rata: for the rate; proportionately.

per capita: [per head] Average per person; per unit of population; per person.
per diem: [through a day] By the day; per day.
vice versa: [with position turned] The other way around, conversely.
de novo: [from the new] Over again, anew.

alias: [otherwise] An assumed name.
veto: [I forbid] Refusal of permission; to prevent or forbid authoritatively.
via: [by the road] By way of; by means of
erratum: error; mistake

in situ: [in the place] In the original place, appropriate position, or natural arrangement.
in vitro: [in glass] In an artificial environment outside the living organism. An experimental or process methodology performed in a "non-natural" setting (e.g., in a laboratory using a glass test tube or Petri dish), and thus outside of a living organism or cell.
in vivo: [in life; in a living thing] Within a living organism. An experiment or process performed on a living specimen.


* Referred website: Answers.com > Latin pharses


【minc 說】

再話說，當我第一次看到 "lol" 的時候，還以為這是像 "=.=" 之類的表情符號，後來某天在學校的某個攤位活動又看到，它是寫在一個大紙箱上，問了一下老妹是什麼意思，她才說是 "laugh out loud" 的意思，我下一秒就在紙箱的另一面看到這三個字。