de facto

[ dee fak-toh, dey ]
See synonyms for de facto on Thesaurus.com
adverb, adjective
  1. in fact; in reality: Although his title was prime minister, he was de facto president of the country.They are forbidden from leaving the camp, thereby being de facto in a state of detention.

  2. actually existing, especially when without lawful authority (distinguished from de jure): He led efforts to reduce de facto segregation in the city's public schools.

noun
  1. Australia. a person who lives with someone in an intimate romantic relationship but is not married to that person.

Origin of de facto

1
First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin dē factō literally, “from the fact”

Words that may be confused with de facto

Words Nearby de facto

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use de facto in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for de facto

de facto

/ (deɪ ˈfæktəʊ) /


adverb
  1. in fact

adjective
  1. existing in fact, whether legally recognized or not: a de facto regime Compare de jure

nounplural -tos
  1. Australian and NZ a de facto husband or wife

Origin of de facto

1
C17: Latin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for de facto

de facto

[ (di fak-toh, day fak-toh) ]


Something generally accepted or agreed to without any formal decision in its favor: “They never elected him; he became their leader de facto.” From Latin, meaning “in fact.” (Compare de jure.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.