viz.
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The abbreviation viz. (or viz without a full stop), short for the Latin videlicet, which itself is a contraction from Latin of videre licet meaning "it is permitted to see", is used as a synonym for "namely", "that is to say", "to wit", or "as follows". It is typically used to introduce examples or further details to illustrate a point. For example: "all types of data viz. text, audio, video, pictures, graphics etc. can be transmitted through networking".[1]
Contents
1 Etymology
2 Usage
2.1 Examples
3 Compared with scilicet (sc., ss., §)
4 See also
5 Notes
6 References
Etymology
Viz. is shorthand for the adverb videlicet. It uses Tironian notes, a system of Latin shorthand. It comprises the first two letters, "vi", followed by the last two, "et", using the z-shaped Tironian "et", historically written ⁊,[2][note 1] a common contraction for "et" in Latin shorthand in Ancient Rome and medieval Europe.
Usage
Viz. is an abbreviation of videlicet, which itself is a contraction from Latin of videre licet meaning "it is permitted to see".[3][4][5] The spelling viz. is the continuation of an abbreviation using Tironian et (vi⁊), the z replacing the ⁊ once the latter had fallen out of common use.
In contradistinction to i.e. and e.g., viz. is used to indicate a detailed description of something stated before, and when it precedes a list of group members, it implies (near) completeness.
Viz. is usually read aloud as "that is", "namely", or "to wit",[6] but is sometimes pronounced as it is spelt, viz.: /ˈvɪz/.
Videlicet is pronounced /vɪˈdɛlɪsɛt/ or /wɪˈdeɪlɪkɛt/.[6]
Examples
- The main point of his speech, viz. that our attitude was in fact harmful, was not understood.
- "My grandfather had four sons who grew up, viz.: Thomas, John, Benjamin and Josiah."[7]
- The noble gases, viz., helium, neon, argon, xenon, krypton, and radon, show an unexpected behavior when exposed to this new element.
Compared with scilicet (sc., ss., §)
A similar expression is scilicet (from earlier scire licet), abbreviated as sc., which is Latin for "it is permitted to know". Sc. provides a parenthetic clarification, removes an ambiguity, or supplies a word omitted in preceding text, while viz. is usually used to elaborate or detail text which precedes it.
In legal usage, scilicet appears abbreviated as ss. or, in a caption, as §, where it provides a statement of venue[clarification needed] and is read as "to wit".[8]Scilicet can be read as "namely", "to wit", or "that is to say", or pronounced /ˈskiːlɪkɛt/ or anglicized as /ˈsɪlɪsɛt/.[9]
See also
- Cf.
- See also (disambiguation)
- Sic
Notes
^ According to E. Cobham Brewer (1810–1897), Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, the same abbreviation mark was used for "habet" and "omnibus".
References
^ "'videlicet', Random House Dictionary". dictionary.com. Retrieved 19 March 2015..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ Brewer, Ebenezer (1970). Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. New York: Harper & Row. p. 1132.
^ Oxford English Dictionary
^ The New Fowler's Modern English Usage (revised third edition, 1998), pp. 825, 828.
^ American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (fourth edition, 2000), p. 1917
^ ab The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (fourth edition, 2000), p. 1917.
^ The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin at Project Gutenberg.
^ Black's Law Dictionary (sixth edition, 1990), p. 1403.
^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (fourth edition, 2000), p. 1560.
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