This French word doesn’t have anything to do with an ID.
Why do I need to know idem?
This French word is used in every day language and comes from latin roots.
What does it mean?
The word idem, roughly pronounced ee-dem (listen here), means “the same” or “me too”.
In Latin, idem is a term used to avoid repeating something that has just been mentioned, particularly in inventories, lists, or publication notes. It was often abbreviated as id.
Another example is the Latin expression non bis in idem – this was also used in legal contexts, where it refers to a principle stating that a person cannot be tried or convicted twice for the same offence.
In modern French, idem is commonly used in informal speech and writing to avoid repeating something. Its English equivalent is “ditto”.
Use it like this
“Je vais prendre un café.” “Idem!” – “I’ll have a coffee”, “ditto”
Je t’ai déjà dit d’enlever tes chaussures en entrant dans la maison, et idem pour ton frère. – I’ve told you before to take your shoes off before you come into the house, and the same goes for your brother.
Je viens de visiter un appartement avec les toilettes sur le palier, idem pour les trois autres. – I just visited an apartment with the toilets in the hallway, and it was the same for the three others.
