Economist Style Guide - Redress Information & Analysis

part 3: useful reference
de minimis abbreviation of de minimis non curat lex, meaning
the law is not concerned with trivial matters; too
small to be taken seriously
de profundis from the depths
deus ex machina God from a machine; fi rst used of a Greek
theatrical convention, where a god would swing
on to the stage, high up in a machine, solving
humanly insoluble problems and thus resolving
the action of a play. Now used to describe a
wholly outside person who puts matters right
eg, exempli gratia for example
et al., et alii and others, used as an abbreviation in
bibliographies when citing multiple editorship
or authorship to save the writer the bother of
writing out all the names. Thus, A. Bloggs et al.,
The Occurrence of Endangered Species in the Genus
Orthodoptera
ex ante before the event
ex cathedra from the chair of offi ce, authoritatively
ex offi cio by virtue of one’s offi ce, not unoffi cially
ex gratia as a favour, not under any compulsion
ex parte from or for one side only
ex post facto, ex after the fact, retrospectively
post
ex tempore off the cuff, without preparation (extempore)
habeas corpus that you have a body; a writ to bring a person
before a court, in most cases to ensure that the
person’s imprisonment is not illegal
horror vacui literally, “fear of empty space”; the compulsion
to make marks in every space. Horror vacui is
indicated by a crowded design
ibid., ibidem in the same place; used in footnotes in academic
works to mean that the quote comes from the
same source
idem the same, as mentioned before; like ibidem
ie, id est that is, explains the material immediately in front
of it
in absentia in the absence of, used as “absent”
in camera in a (private) room, that is, not in public
in fl agrante delicto in the act of committing a crime; caught redhanded;
an expression that seems to have
developed a sexual connotation
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