English for Today by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)
ACADEMIC JARGON
Jargon are special words or expressions used by a profession or group that are difficult for others to understand. The word does not mean nonsensical words and it does not attract the plural marker ‘s’. Some academic jargon are:
- Et al. — Et al. is a short form for the Latin term “et alia”, meaning “and others.” It is used in academic citations when referring to a source with multiple authors: Hulme et al. Note that at the first instance of citing a work by multiple authors, all the authors should be listed and et al. can be used in subsequent mentions.
- Ibid: This term is an adverb meaning “in the same source”. It is used to save space in textual references to a quoted work which has been mentioned in a previous reference.
“(ibid. p. 57)”. - Op. cit.: This term means “in the work already cited”. It is used in an endnote or footnote to refer the reader to a previously cited work, standing in for repetition of the full title of the work.
- Sic: It is used in brackets after a copied or quoted word(s) that appears odd or erroneous to show that the portion is quoted exactly as it stands in the original text.
GAB
