etc

Dictionary.com Unabridged

adverb

and others; and so forth; and so on (used to indicate that more of the same sort or class might have been mentioned, but for brevity have been omitted): He had dogs, cats, guinea pigs, frogs, et cetera, as pets. Abbreviation: etc.

Origin:
1100–50; late Old English < Latin

Usage note
Et cetera, a Latin phrase, appears in English writing most frequently in its abbreviated form, etc. This phrase is used frequently in technical and business writing, somewhat less frequently in general informal writing, and sometimes in literary or formal writing. Expressions such as and so forth and and so on are useful substitutes. Because “and” is included in the meaning of et cetera, the expression and et cetera is redundant.

Pronunciation note
Pronunciations with

[k] substituted for the first

[t]

[ek-set-er-uh] or

[ek-se-truh] although occasionally used by educated speakers, are usually considered nonstandard.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To etc

Relevant Questions

What Does Etc Stand For?

00:10

Etc is always a great word to know.

So is bezoar. Does it mean:

a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.

a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.

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Collins

World English Dictionary

etc.

—*abbreviation for*
	et cetera

et cetera or etcetera (ɪt ˈsɛtrə)

—
1.	and the rest; and others; and so forth: used at the end of a list to indicate that other items of the same class or type should be considered or included
2.	or the like; or something else similar

usage It is unnecessary to use and before etc as etc (et cetera) already means and other things. The repetition of etc, as in he brought paper, ink, notebooks, etc, etc, is avoided except in informal contexts

etcetera or etcetera

—

usage It is unnecessary to use and before etc as etc (et cetera) already means and other things. The repetition of etc, as in he brought paper, ink, notebooks, etc, etc, is avoided except in informal contexts

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

et cetera

also etcetera, early 15c., from L. et cetera, lit. "and the others," from et "and" + neut. of ceteri "the others." The common abbreviation was &c. before 20c., but etc. now prevails.

etc.

see et cetera.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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