Abbreviations are the most common exceptions to the segmentation rules (for example "e.g."). MetaTexis includes an automatic recognition of abbreviations which is activated by the Treat words with a dot as abbreviation if followed by word in lowercase checkbox. When this option is active, MetaTexis will not add segment break after abbreviations if they are followed by a word in lowercase, for it is assumed that segments start with an uppercase letter. When you translate a document where this often leads to wrong results, you can de-activate this option.
In MetaTexis, you can define an unlimited number of abbreviations. You can either define each one of them by entering it in the lower text box and clicking on the Add button, or you can import them from any text file that can be imported by Microsoft Word by clicking on the Import from text file button (see next section).
All the elements of an abbreviation which are followed by a dot and a space are relevant. For example, in the abbreviation "e. g." both "e." and "g." have to be included in the list, whereas in "i.e." both "i." and "e." are relevant. Therefore, if you want to make sure that a paragraph is not segmented behind "e. g." or "i.e." you have to add the following items to the abbreviations list: "i.", "e.", and "g.".
The abbreviations list is active by default. To de-activate it, just uncheck the Do not segment behind these abbreviations checkbox.