etaoin shrdlu
English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
From the arrangement of letters on the keyboard of a linotype machine: typesetters would mark errors by running their fingers across the keys, and the results would sometimes accidentally find their way into print. The letters in the string are, approximately, the 12 most commonly used letters in the English language, ordered by their frequency, which drove the design of the linotype keyboard.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
etaoin shrdlu (plural etaoin shrdlus)
- Nonsense, filler text (dummy text), or an example of accidental typing (typo).
- 1989, Alex Brown, In print: text and type[1], page 137:
- You can see why compositors reflexively filled lines to be corrected with etaoin shrdlus.
See also edit
Further reading edit
- “etaoin shrdlu”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.