Spellings and Usages
The one-word spelling "etcetera" is commonly used and is accepted as correct by many dictionaries. It is also sometimes spelled et caetera, et coetera or et cœtera and is often abbreviated to etc. or &c. Archaic abbreviations, most commonly used in legislation, notations for mathematics or qualifications, include &/c., &e., &ct., and &ca. Note that the ampersand is a ligature of "et".
The phrase et cetera is often used to delete the logical continuation of some sort of series of descriptions. For example, in the following expression…
- We will need a lot of bread: wheat, granary, wholemeal, etc.
Typically, the abbreviated versions should always be followed by a full stop (period), and it is customary—even in British English where the serial comma is typically not used—that "etc." always be preceded by a comma. Thus:
- A, B, C, etc.
not:
- A, B, C etc
Some publishing house styles (particularly in Britain) no longer require either the preceding comma nor the following stop.
Some editors consider that “and the rest” implies a finite list thus distinguishing “etc.” from “and the like”, “and so forth” and so on preferring “apples, bananas, oranges and so on” to “apples, bananas, oranges, etc." unless the greengrocer supplies a list of fruit to choose for the luncheon.
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