fact-check

[fakt-chek]

verb (used with object)

1. to confirm the truth of (an assertion made in speech or writing), often as part of the research or editorial process.

noun

1. the action of confirming the truth of an assertion made in speech or writing.

   A fact-check of the senator’s speech revealed several misleading comments about his opponent.

Other Word Forms

• fact-checker noun
• fact-checking noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of fact-check¹

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

He didn’t need to worry about getting fact-checked, the vendor told him, as the county had no records of who was in its facilities decades ago.

From Los Angeles Times

The social media magnate announced in January that the company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, would implement a startling fact-checking shutdown in the United States, as well as rollbacks to its hate speech policy worldwide.

From Salon

Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Los Angeles last month, Grok incorrectly fact-checked posts.

From Los Angeles Times

These attacks on fact-checking come despite the fact that many of those most controversial decisions were made by platforms, not fact-checkers.

From Salon

MacKinnon is fact-checking Didion in real time, refusing to let her apply her fearsome talent for story-spinning to her own life.

From Salon