ex post facto

[eks pohst fak-toh]

adverb

1. from or by subsequent action; retroactively; subsequently; retrospectively.

adjective

1. having retroactive force; made or done subsequently.

   an ex post facto law.

ex post facto

/ ɛks pəʊst ˈfæktəʊ /

adjective

1. having retrospective effect

   an ex post facto law

ex post facto

¹

1. An explanation or regulation concocted after the event, sometimes misleading or unjust: “Your ex post facto defense won't stand up in court.” (See ex post facto law.) From Latin, meaning “after the deed.”

ex post facto

²

1. A descriptive term for an explanation or a law that is made up after an event and then applied to it: “The chairman's description of his plan sounds like an ex post facto attempt to justify an impulsive action.” Ex post facto is Latin for “from after the deed.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of ex post facto¹

First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin: “from a thing done afterward, from what is done afterward”

Word History and Origins

Origin of ex post facto¹

C17: from Latin ex from + post afterwards + factus done, from facere to do