Word.ws English Dictionary

after the fact

UK/ˌɑːftə ðə ˈfækt/US/ˌæftɚ ðə ˈfækt/

after the fact prepositional phrase: after the occurrence of some action or event, such as a crime or the formation of a contract.

Prepositional phrase

  1. After the occurrence of some action or event, such as a crime or the formation of a contract.
    Synonyms:
    post factum
  2. Too late; after something is finished or final.
    • You made the commitment, and you can't change the terms after the fact.
    Synonyms:
    post hoc

Synonyms of after the fact

Forms of after the fact

alternative formATF

Words formed from after the fact

Questions about after the fact

What does after the fact mean?
After the fact means after the occurrence of some action or event, such as a crime or the formation of a contract.
What part of speech is after the fact?
After the fact is a prepositional phrase.
How do you pronounce after the fact?
After the fact is pronounced /ˌɑːftə ðə ˈfækt/ (UK).

Words near after the fact in the dictionary

  1. after Saturday comes Sunday
  2. after school special
  3. after school specials
  4. after taste
  5. after tastes
  6. after the fact
  7. after the jump
  8. after the Lord Mayor's show
  9. after us the deluge
  10. after you
  11. after you, Alphonse

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: after the fact (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-after the fact.ogg.

Cite this entry: “after the fact.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/after_the_fact. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.