idem

American  

[ahy-dem, id-em] / ˈaɪ dɛm, ˈɪd ɛm /

pronoun

1. the same as previously given or mentioned.

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idem British  

/ ˈaɪdɛm, ˈɪdɛm /

1. the same: used to refer to an article, chapter, etc, previously cited

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Etymology

Origin of idem

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin īdem

Explanation

In legal or academic writing, idem is used in footnotes to mean "the same as previously mentioned." For a research paper, you can use idem to indicate you're citing a different page of the exact same source. The Latin idem means "the same," and it's usually abbreviated as id. These days, most academics prefer to use the term ibid., or "in the same place," in scholarly bibliographies, or to simply repeat the author's last name. If you do come across idem in footnotes, endnotes, or a legal document, you'll know it means "this information comes from the same work and author as the last citation."

Example Sentences

Yet the very word “identity” points toward the trouble: It comes from the Latin idem, meaning “the same.”

From New York Times • Aug. 10, 2018

But banned are such standard and numbing footnote fare as ed. cit., loc. cit., op. cit., idem and ibid.

From Time Magazine Archive

Et idem Hugo sibi concessit, saluo iure suo.

From Villainage in England Essays in English Mediaeval History by Vinogradoff, Paul

Item ad idem, Matth�i quinto: Dictum est antiquis: non perjurabis, reddes autem Deo juramenta tua; ego autem dico vobis non jurare omnino; quod ille concedit iste prohibet; Ergo etc.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume I by Lea, Henry Charles

Item ad idem, Matth�i quinto: Dictum est antiquis: Diliges proximum tuum et odio habebis inimicum tuum.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume I by Lea, Henry Charles