The abbreviation 'etc.' is short for which Latin phrase?

The abbreviation “etc.” is short for the Latin phrase “et cetera,” meaning “and the rest” or “and so forth.”

The phrase combines Latin et, meaning “and,” with cētera, meaning “the other things” or “the remainder.” English uses it at the end of a list when the writer does not want to name every remaining example. For instance, “Bring pens, pencils, paper, etc.” signals that other related supplies are included as well.

A common mistake is to write “and etc.,” which repeats the meaning of et because “et” already means “and.” Another is adding a second period when the abbreviation ends a sentence: “We bought fruit, bread, and milk, etc.” needs only the abbreviation’s final period. The phrase is different from et al., which means “and others” and is normally used for people, especially in citations.

The older abbreviation “&c.” also exists. It combines the ampersand, historically a ligature of et, with c from cetera.