fact
UK[fækt]US[fækt]
n
A thing that is known or proved to be true.
n
Information used as evidence or as part of a report.
Etymology
The word 'fact' entered English in the late 16th century from the Latin factum, meaning 'a thing done' or 'an act'. This noun is the neuter past participle of the verb facere, 'to do or make'. The semantic journey from a concrete 'deed' to an abstract 'truth' or 'reality' is logical: something that has been done becomes an established, undeniable reality. The Latin facere itself descends from the Proto-Indo-European root dʰeh₁-, meaning 'to put, to place, to set', which also gave rise to English words like 'do', 'deed', and 'theme'.
Analysis
The word 'fact' is a simplex loanword from Latin. It is not productively segmented into smaller, meaningful morphemes in modern English.
Examples
It is a scientific fact that water boils at 100 degrees Celsius at sea level.
The detective needed to separate fact from fiction to solve the case.
The report is based on a careful analysis of the facts.