fait accompli
noun
fait ac·com·pli
ˈfā-tə-ˌkäm-ˈplē 
ˈfe-,
ˈfe-ˌta-
-ˌkōⁿ(m)-,
British usually -ˈkäm-(ˌ)plē
plural faits accomplis
ˈfā-tə-ˌkäm-ˈplē(z)
ˈfe-,
ˈfe-ˌta-,
-ˌkōⁿ(m)-,
British usually -ˈkäm-(ˌ)plē(z)
: a thing accomplished and presumably irreversible
he charged that the members were presented with a fait accompli instead of being called to a meeting to discuss the policy change—
Daniel Thomases
Daniel ThomasesExamples of fait accompli in a Sentence
By the time we learned about the decision, it was already a fait accompli.
Recent Examples on the Web
No one knows what the presidential landscape three years from now will look like, but Sanders’ hand off to Ocasio-Cortez looks suspiciously like a fait accompli.
—Laura Washington, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2025
When freshman Christian Anderson drained a 3-pointer with 2:06 to play, Texas Tech had gone on a 10-0 run, cut the deficit to three and goaded Arkansas into a timeout to discuss how not to blow what seemed like a fait accompli.
—Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
What was uncertainty on whether or not Trump would spare the auto industry from import tariffs now is all but a fait accompli.
—Ed Garsten, Forbes.com, 26 Mar. 2025
Korea’s demographic collapse is mostly taken as a fait accompli.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fait accompli
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Laura Washington, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2025
When freshman Christian Anderson drained a 3-pointer with 2:06 to play, Texas Tech had gone on a 10-0 run, cut the deficit to three and goaded Arkansas into a timeout to discuss how not to blow what seemed like a fait accompli.
—Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
What was uncertainty on whether or not Trump would spare the auto industry from import tariffs now is all but a fait accompli.
—Ed Garsten, Forbes.com, 26 Mar. 2025
Korea’s demographic collapse is mostly taken as a fait accompli.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fait accompli
Cite this Entry
“Fait accompli.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fait%20accompli. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
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