Latin Words and Phrases

Searching the Web for help, I found this sentence, “It’s not a problem of your system, per say.”

Ouch.

Per se is Latin for “in/by itself or themselves; as such.”  Many Latin terms are part of English.  Once English italicized all foreign terms, but in the U.S., we write the common ones in regular type, as a good dictionary will confirm.

Of course, medical and legal dictionaries are full of Latin. 

Below are a few Latin terms in everyday English:

ad hoc - for this (current) purpose. The crisis was assessed by an ad hoc committee.

de minimis - slight(ly) or negligib(ly)  We found other errors but judged them de minimis.

deus ex machina - supernatural intervention to “save the day”

e.g. exempli gratia - examples drawn from among others; an incomplete list 

ergo - therefore 

i.e.  id est - that is; a complete list

ipso facto - by that fact alone.  All care by physicians is not ipso facto the best care.

mutatis mutandis - all things being equal; after the appropriate changes are made

pro bono -  for the good of others; work done without charge

pro rata - proportionately shared.  We combined the shipment, but billed each party pro rata.

quid pro quo - what is given in exchange.  He offered a favor, but there was a quid pro quo.

quod erat demonstrandum Q.E.D. - [This is] what we set out to prove.

sic - yes; so.  "That is how the writer wrote it."  Used to recognize an error.

Here is a link to many, many more Latin terms. 

And here is a shorter list that includes abbreviations.