Etcetera

/ɛtˈsɛtərə/ noun

Definition

An abbreviation written as 'etc.' meaning 'and so on' or 'and other things like this,' used when listing examples without naming everything.

Etymology

From Latin 'et cetera,' literally meaning 'and the rest' or 'and other things.' It's one of the few Latin phrases still commonly used in English writing and speech today.

Kelly Says

People have been using 'et cetera' for hundreds of years as a lazy way to say 'I could keep listing stuff but I won't'—it's basically the original abbreviation that shows up in Shakespeare's time! The abbreviation 'etc.' is so common we forget it's actually Latin.

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