Definition - An abbreviation used to represent the logical continuation of a series of examples.

Example -
We will need a lot of fruit: apples, bananas, oranges, etc.


1. Don't say and etc. It's redundant.

2. If it ends a sentence, just use one period.

3. Always precede it with a comma. Always.

4. For lists of people, use et al., which means "and others."

5. Put a comma after etc. unless it ends the sentence.

6. Don't use it in examples.

We ate some fruit, e.g. apples, bananas, etc. (bad)
We ate some fruit, e.g. apples and bananas. (good)

7. You don't need to italicize it

Etymology -
The term derives from a Latin expression that means "and other things" (from the Latin et, and, plus the neuter of ceteri, the others).

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