On 2004-01-20 19:06:27 +0000 Jakob Bohm <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Actually, it can be read as either the Latin (as explained above) or as an abbreviation of "Regarding". [...]
I suspect it cannot, as there is no denotation of abbreviation. For the Latin meaning, I cite Collins Concise English Dictionary as my source, although there are others.
In contrast, the Re: used in e-mails is an abbreviation of Reply carefully chosen to coincide with the abbreviation used in letters to represent "Res" or "Regarding". [...]
Do you have a reference for that, please? Regardless, emails weren't being discussed originally.
For illustration, this e-mail contains both types of Re: header, showing the difference in semantics and usage.
Actually, on letters I more often see "Re The recent postings ..." without a colon, but these headers seem only to be popular amongst people like accountants &c.
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