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FACT

[fakt]

Origin

noun

something that actually exists; reality; truth: Your fears have no basis in fact.

something known to exist or to have happened: Space travel is now a fact.

a truth known by actual experience or observation; something known to be true: Scientists gather facts about plant growth.

something said to be true or supposed to have happened: The facts given by the witness are highly questionable.

Law. Often, facts. an actual or alleged event or circumstance, as distinguished from its legal effect or consequence. Compare question of fact, question of law.

Idioms

after the fact, Law. after the commission of a crime: an accessory after the fact.

before the fact, Law. prior to the commission of a crime: an accessory before the fact.

in fact, actually; really; indeed: In fact, it was a wonder that anyone survived.

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Fact is always a great word to know.

So is aggravated. Does it mean:

characterized by some feature defined by law that enhances the crime, as the intention of the criminal or the special vulnerability of the victim

a person who brings suit in a court against a defendant

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Origin:
1530–40; < Latin factum something done, deed, noun use of neuter of factus done, past participle of facere to do¹

Related forms

fact·ful, adjective

Can be confused: facts, FAQs, fax.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins

World English Dictionary

fact (fækt)

—n
1.	an event or thing known to have happened or existed
2.	a truth verifiable from experience or observation
3.	a piece of information: get me all the facts of this case
4.	(often plural) law an actual event, happening, etc, as distinguished from its legal consequences. Questions of fact are decided by the jury, questions of law by the court or judge
5.	philosophy a proposition that may be either true or false, as contrasted with an evaluative statement
6.	criminal law after the fact after the commission of the offence: an accessory after the fact
7.	criminal law before the fact before the commission of the offence
8.	as a matter of fact, in fact, in point of fact in reality or actuality
9.	fact of life an inescapable truth, esp an unpleasant one
10.	the fact of the matter the truth

[C16: from Latin factum something done, from factus made, from facere to make]

'factful

—*adj*

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

fact

1530s, "action," especially "evil deed," from L. factum "event, occurrence," lit. "thing done," from neut. pp. of facere "to do" (see factitious). Usual modern sense of "thing known to be true" appeared 1630s, from notion of "something that has actually occurred." Facts

EXPAND

of life "harsh realities" is from 1854; specific sense of "human sexual functions" first recorded 1913.

COLLAPSE

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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FOLDOC

Computing Dictionary

FACT definition

Fully Automated Compiling Technique

fact definition

artificial intelligence, programming
The kind of clause used in logic programming which has no subgoals and so is always true (always succeeds). E.g.
wet(water). male(denis).
This is in contrast to a rule which only succeeds if all its subgoals do. Rules usually contain logic variables, facts rarely do, except for oddities like "equal(X,X).".
(1996-10-20)

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

fact

In addition to the idiom beginning with fact, also see after the fact; in fact; is that a fact; matter of fact.