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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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. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for fait accompli
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.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.