inter alia

Meaning

1. 1phrasefixed phraseformal

   Among other things; used when you name one item from a longer list that you are not going to spell out in full.

   Grammar: Slots in next to the item mentioned: the report covers, inter alia, safety, not a stand-alone sentence.

   Patterns

   • including, inter alia, something
   • something, inter alia

   The contract requires the supplier, inter alia, to provide monthly reports.

   The committee discussed, inter alia, the budget and the new parking rules.

   The study measured sleep quality, inter alia, in over two thousand adults.

Common combinations

covers, inter alia,

The policy covers, inter alia, fire and flood damage.

including, inter alia,

The charges include, inter alia, fraud and forgery.

argued, inter alia, that

The lawyer argued, inter alia, that the evidence was unreliable.

states, inter alia,

The statute states, inter alia, who may apply for a license.

Synonyms and how they differ

among other things

Among other things means the same but is ordinary English, whereas inter alia sounds legal or scholarly.

for example

For example introduces a sample of a list, while inter alia signals that the list goes on without clearly offering a sample.

inter alios

Inter alios is the related Latin phrase used for people ('among others'), whereas inter alia is for things.

Word family

alia noun

Latin for 'other things', rarely used alone in English

et al. abbreviation

short for 'and others', used for people in citations

inter preposition

Latin for 'among' or 'between', found in words like international

Commonly confused: inter alia or inter alios?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “inter alia”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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