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ab initio

[ ahb i-nit-ee-oh; English ab i-nish-ee-oh ]
/ ɑb ɪˈnɪt iˌoʊ; English æb ɪˈnɪʃ iˌoʊ /
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adverb Latin.

from the beginning.

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Nearby words

  1. aave,
  2. ab,
  3. ab aeterno,
  4. ab esse,
  5. ab extra,
  6. ab intra,
  7. ab origine,
  8. ab ovo,
  9. ab urbe condita,
  10. ab-
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ab initio

British Dictionary definitions for ab initio

ab initio

/ Latin (æb ɪˈnɪʃɪˌəʊ) /

from the start; from scratchab 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
Word Origin and History for ab initio

ab initio

c.1600, Latin, literally "from the beginning," from oblique case of initium "entrance, beginning," related to verb inire "to go into, enter upon, begin" (see initial).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper