From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishfactfact /fækt/ ●●● S1 W1 noun 1 true information [countable]TRUEINFORMATION a piece of information that is known to be truefact about The book is full of facts about the World Cup.fact of First of all, we need to know the facts of the case.it’s a fact/that’s a fact (=used to emphasize that something is definitely true or that something definitely happened) The divorce rate is twice as high as in the 1950s – that’s a fact.is that a fact? (=used to reply to a statement that you find surprising, interesting, or difficult to believe) ‘She used to be a professional singer.’ ‘Is that a fact?’2 → the fact (that)3 → in (actual) fact4 → the fact (of the matter) is5 → the fact remains6 TRUEreal events/not a story [uncountable] situations, events etc that really happened and have not been invented OPP fiction Much of the novel is based on fact. It’s a news reporter’s job to separate fact from fiction.7 → facts and figures8 → the facts speak for themselves9 → after the fact → as a matter of fact at matter1(4), → face facts at face2(2), → in point of fact at point1(17)COLLOCATIONSadjectivesthe basic/key factsThe report outlines the basic facts concerning the case.a well-known factIt is a well-known fact that new cars lose a lot of their value in the first year.a little-known factIt is a little-known fact that the actor was born in London.an interesting factThe research revealed some interesting facts about the behaviour of cats.a curious/remarkable factIt is a remarkable fact that elephants do not use their trunks to suck up water until they are over four months old.hard facts (=information that is definitely true and can be proven)His theory is supported by hard facts.a historical/scientific factThis was presented as a historical fact when it was just an opinion.the bare facts (=only the basic general facts of a situation)We know the bare facts of his life, but nothing about what he was really like.verbsgive somebody/provide the factsNewspapers have a duty to give their readers the facts.establish/piece together the facts (=find out what actually happened in a situation)The police are still piecing together the facts.examine the factsI decided to examine the facts for myself.state the facts (=say what you know is true)Press reports often fail to state the facts completely.stick to the facts (=say only what you know is true)Just stick to the facts when the police interview you.phrasesknow for a fact (=used to say that something is definitely true)I know for a fact that she is older than me.get your facts right/straight (=make sure that what you say or believe is correct)You should get your facts straight before making accusations.get your facts wrongIt’s no use putting together a beautifully-written argument if you get your facts wrong.
Examples from the Corpus
fact• Gentry still owed Mr Tilly $7,000, a fact he failed to mention when he was arrested.• It is a fact that the world is round.• You need to back up your theory with one or two hard facts.• Confucianism was above all, in fact, the expression of a particular caste, the educated class known as mandarins.• Although her poems appear short and simple, they in fact possess an ever-deepening complexity.• At least if you had no reason to think either would in fact allow more abortions?• In fact house prices have reached such proportions in some areas that many engaged couples have had to postpone their weddings.• In fact the Acapulco is a good all round Club base.• In fact the company says that making Ingres secure involves only around a 3% addition to the product in terms of code.• In fact, no one will admit to being the slightest bit nervous about the lift.• The book is full of interesting facts about plant life.• He's never tried to hide the fact that he spent time in jail.• I'm not interested in your opinions - I just want to know the facts.• It's important that young people learn the facts about drugs.• The most important thing is to find out what the facts are and put the scandal behind us.• The fact is, this is a business deal.fact about• The book is full of interesting facts about plants.fact from fiction• Perhaps it is not reasonable to expect news reporters to sort fact from fiction when complex environmental issues are at stake.Origin fact (1400-1500) Latin factum “thing done”, from facere “to do, make” 