de facto
In actual use or existence, regardless of official or legal status.
Seen in the wild
É de facto um privilégio. Sugiro que vejas o resto da filmografia dele. De certeza que vais gostar.
I did enjoy the 90s and 00s trend of French footballers treating interviews with France Football magazine as de facto therapy sessions (see also Nicolas Anelka). Very reminiscent of the relationship between Tory prime…
De facto aber schon. Es braucht keinen Koalitionsvertrag mit der 💩fD, um deren Forderungen umzusetzen. Dazu reicht allein der Wille. Und der ist nun mal offensichtlich und offenbar vorhanden.
Det är eventuellt vad vi kommit fram till, men vad vi faktiskt implementerat är väl betydligt närmare en version av temporär chef/arbetare än vad du beskriver. Ingen av oss vanliga människor är de facto med och bestäm…
www.politico.eu/article/volo... Perhaps the UK should seek a stake in Zelensky's bid to build its own anti-missile system - the UK has no air defences to speak of and that leaves an open goal to Putin if he is tempted…
Definitions
In actual use or existence, regardless of official or legal status.
While it is largely recognized that Ukraine holds de jure sovereignty on Crimea, Russia exercises de facto administration on the peninsula.
“É de facto um privilégio. Sugiro que vejas o resto da filmografia dele. De certeza que vais gostar.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“I did enjoy the 90s and 00s trend of French footballers treating interviews with France Football magazine as de facto therapy sessions (see also Nicolas Anelka). Very reminiscent of the relationship between Tory prime ministers and the Times back in the day”
— Bluesky· May 2026“De facto aber schon. Es braucht keinen Koalitionsvertrag mit der 💩fD, um deren Forderungen umzusetzen. Dazu reicht allein der Wille. Und der ist nun mal offensichtlich und offenbar vorhanden.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Det är eventuellt vad vi kommit fram till, men vad vi faktiskt implementerat är väl betydligt närmare en version av temporär chef/arbetare än vad du beskriver. Ingen av oss vanliga människor är de facto med och bestämmer.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“www.politico.eu/article/volo... Perhaps the UK should seek a stake in Zelensky's bid to build its own anti-missile system - the UK has no air defences to speak of and that leaves an open goal to Putin if he is tempted to test Trump's de facto exit from NATO.”
— Bluesky· May 2026
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(Australia, NZ) A legally undeclared spouse; a partner in a spousal relationship which is not officially declared as a marriage, comparable to a common law husband or wife.
One of the vendors was simple and straight; he said that it was his policy not to rent a house to de factos.
Comments
(modal) In actual use or existence, regardless of official or legal status.
"de facto" means: In actual use or existence, regardless of official or legal status.. This is technical or formal vocabulary, more likely to appear in school work, news or a particular profession than in peer chat. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour. If your child uses the term, it is usually a sign of curiosity about a subject area. A short follow-up question about where they came across it is usually all that is needed.
"de facto" means: In actual use or existence, regardless of official or legal status.. Register: formal or technical English, standard in its specialist domain (law, medicine, science, finance, etc.). Gloss the term with a plain synonym when writing for a general audience. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used naturally in a comparable context.
“the president slapping his name and likeness wherever he can like an aspiring teenage graffiti artist, aiding and abetting Benjamin Netanyahu's ethnic cleansing campaign in Gaza, and unleashing a de facto brute squad across the country to terrorize immigrant communities”
— Bluesky· May 2026“I would like to give thanks to - The Ukraine, - Its People, - And its President, Mr. Zelenskyy. You have all persevered where others have faulted de facto. 🎩 That's all.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“De Facto launched on Press Freedom Day with some immigration related zingers. @defacto-ca.bsky.social www.defactomedia.ca/vpd-immigrat...”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Why is Bernie the de facto socialist? There are so many better examples.”
— Bluesky· May 2026“2026-05-06 00:15:39 - Germany’s foreign minister said Germany would not accept the de facto annexation of parts of the West Bank.”
— Bluesky· May 2026
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