fact-check

American  

[fakt-chek] / ˈfæktˌtʃɛk /

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.

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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

Etymology

Origin of fact-check

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

Analysis by Nepali online fact-check experts TechPana found the images had been created using OpenAI's ChatGPT, while police said less than 5,000 people were at the real event.

From Barron's • Mar. 3, 2026

“It is not for me to fact-check for the county,” she told Judge Lawrence Riff at a court hearing Wednesday.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 29, 2026

“It’s looking at the production in front of you and saying, ‘Oh, that is written really well, but I actually need to fact-check this.’”

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025

The Chinese Embassy said the allegations of "forced labor" in her reports "cannot withstand basic fact-check".

From BBC • Nov. 3, 2025

It was educational — though I didn’t fact-check — weaving in the stories of artists considered revolutionary in their time, like Morisot, Monet and Degas.

From Salon • Oct. 31, 2025