Usage and Grammar

Q. When used in footnotes what does the Latin word pace mean?

A. Pace is Latin for “in peace,” and in footnotes it means something like “no offense intended” toward a person or source that you are contradicting. For example,

This conclusion is usually incorrect (pace Smith and Jones 1999).

Although in Chicago style familiar Latin terms are set in roman type, put pace in italics if there’s danger of mistaking it for the English word pace.