counterfactual

American  

[koun-ter-fak-choo-uhl] / ˌkaʊn tərˈfæk tʃu əl /

noun

Logic.

1. a conditional statement the first clause of which expresses something contrary to fact, as “If I had known.”

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counterfactual British  

/ ˌkauntəˈfæktʃʊəl /

adjective

1. expressing what has not happened but could, would, or might under differing conditions

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noun

1. a conditional statement in which the first clause is a past tense subjunctive statement expressing something contrary to fact, as in

   if she had hurried she would have caught the bus

Other Word Forms

• counterfact noun
• counterfactually adverb

Etymology

Origin of counterfactual

First recorded in 1945–50; counter- + factual

Example Sentences

He repeatedly invokes counterfactual arguments to insist that without guns there would have been no Industrial Revolution.

From The Wall Street Journal

It’s a choice that holds up well against a counterfactual life given over to hobbies and travel.

From The Wall Street Journal

That effacement tries to create a counterfactual absurdity.

From Salon

We can't be certain because the results depend heavily on the method chosen by researchers for measuring the "counterfactual", i.e what would have happened to UK exports had the country stayed in the EU.

From BBC

These so-called counterfactual scenarios are alternative possibilities for past events, i.e. scenarios that did not occur but could have happened.

From Science Daily