fait accompli

[ fe ta-kawn-plee ]

/ fɛ ta kɔ̃ˈpli /

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noun, plural faits ac·com·plis

[fe za-kawn-plee]. /fɛ za kɔ̃ˈpli/. French.

an accomplished fact; a thing already done: The enemy's defeat was a fait accompli long before the formal surrender.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of fait accompli

First recorded in 1835–45

Words nearby fait accompli

Faisalabad, Faisal I, Faisal Ibn Abdul Aziz, Faisal II, fais-dodo, fait accompli, faites vos jeux, faith, faith-based, faith community, faith cure

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use fait accompli in a sentence

Pursuing the issue by force in order to create a fait accompli is theologically reckless and a political recipe for disaster.
Think Twice About Jews On The Temple Mount|Edward S. Goldstein|June 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST
That does not make a war with Iran a fait accompli, but it does bring the possibility ever closer.
Likud Veers to the Right|Justin Green|November 28, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The Iranians are racing to make their nuclear capability a fait accompli.
Obama, Iran, and the ‘Jewish Vote’|Trita Parsi|June 12, 2012|DAILY BEAST
He did his best to sound statesmanlike as he accepted the fait accompli.
Afghanistan: Karzai and the Taliban in a Tizzy Over News of Secret Peace Talks|Sami Yousafzai, Ron Moreau|January 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST

But for Moore, the most difficult and also most satisfying fait accompli was her giblet gravy.
Food Writers Share Thanksgiving Stories|Jessica Ferri|November 24, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Yet, even in France, the task of transforming medicine into a natural and exact science is far from being a fait accompli.
An Epitome of the History of Medicine|Roswell Park
Rupture in diplomatic relations between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, he said, was a fait accompli.
The Story of the Great War, Volume I (of 8)|Various
Then Gladstone, October 7, tried to force Palmerston's hand by treating the intervention as a fait accompli.
The Education of Henry Adams|Henry Adams
And this, of course, remains to you, since the marriage is a fait accompli?
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes|A. Conan Doyle
Helen's own friends, I discovered, had passed from teasing to regard us as a fait accompli, and thereafter held their peace.
I Walked in Arden|Jack Crawford

British Dictionary definitions for fait accompli

fait accompli

/ French (fɛt akɔ̃pli) /

noun plural faits accomplis (fɛz akɔ̃pli)

something already done and beyond alteration

Word Origin for fait accompli

literally: accomplished fact

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

Cultural definitions for fait accompli

fait accompli

[ (fayt uh-kom-plee, fet ah-kohm-plee) ]

Something that has already been done: “The company president did not discuss the new hiring policy with her board of directors; instead she put it into effect and presented the board with a fait accompli.” From French, meaning “an accomplished fact.”

fait accompli

Origin of fait accompli

Words nearby fait accompli

Words related to fait accompli

How to use fait accompli in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fait accompli

Word Origin for fait accompli

Cultural definitions for fait accompli