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ab initio

American  
[ahb i-nit-ee-oh, ab i-nish-ee-oh] / ɑb ɪˈnɪt iˌoʊ, æb ɪˈnɪʃ iˌoʊ /

adverb

Latin.
  1. from the beginning.


ab initio British  
/ æb ɪˈnɪʃɪˌəʊ /
  1. from the start; from scratch

    ab initio courses

"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

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

Many universities now offer "ab initio" undergraduate courses for languages, meaning you can start as a complete beginner - something Prof Koglbauer says has bolstered uptake.

From BBC Dec. 15, 2025

The new CVF model is reliable, efficient, scalable and transferable, and incorporates ab initio quantum calculations that accurately reproduce the thermodynamic properties of water under different conditions.

From Science Daily Nov. 14, 2024

Using precise ab initio calculations, the results closely matched real-world data on nuclear properties such as size, structure and binding energy.

From Science Daily May 15, 2024

The void ab initio doctrine has obvious application in SisterSong.

From Slate Nov. 16, 2022

In America, on the other hand, the state founded the schools ab initio.

From The Moral Instruction of Children by Adler, Felix

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