fact

English Online Dictionary. What means fact‎? What does fact mean?

English

Etymology

From Old French fact, from Latin factum (“an act, deed, feat, etc.”); also Medieval Latin for “state, condition, circumstance”; neuter of factus (“done or made”), perfect passive participle of faciō (“do, make”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to put, place, set”). Old/Middle French later evolved it into faict and fait. Doublet of feat.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fækt/
• Rhymes: -ækt

Noun

fact (countable and uncountable, plural facts)

1. Something actual as opposed to invented.
2. Something which is real.

3. Something concrete used as a basis for further interpretation.

4. An objective consensus on a fundamental reality that has been agreed upon by a substantial number of experts.

5. Information about a particular subject, especially actual conditions and/or circumstances.

6. (databases) An individual value or measurement at the lowest level of granularity in a data warehouse.
7. (archaic) Action; the realm of action.
8. (law, obsolete except in set phrases) A wrongful or criminal deed.
9. (obsolete) A feat or meritorious deed.

Usage notes

The collocation true fact is a famous example of a pleonasm that irritates some readers or listeners: all facts are true, and anything not true is not a fact. The collocation often arises innocently enough as a speaker or writer reaches for emphaticness, but in careful (deliberative) writing, the writer's own interests (e.g., credibility, persuasion) are best served by deleting the adjective. Ironic usage may bend this rule for humorous effect (e.g., trufax).

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “Something actual”): fiction
• (antonym(s) of “Something objective”): opinion

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

See also

• value
• belief

References

• “fact”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “fact”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “fact”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• "Conway: 'Alternative Facts'" Merriam-Webster's Trend Watch Merriam-Webster. 2017.

Interjection

fact

1. Used before making a statement to introduce it as a trustworthy one.

Anagrams

• acft