En fait


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Essential French Expression

Meaning	in fact, as a matter of fact, actually
Register	normal
Pronunciation		[a(n) feht]
IPA		[ɑ̃ fɛt]

Usage notes: The French expression en fait is used to contradict something and offer an explanation. It’s very common, but in fact probably not as common as you think – see note at the end of this lesson.

Par exemple…

– Tu vas être en retard au travail. – Non, en fait, je suis en congé, pas de travail aujourd’hui.		– You’re going to be late for work. – No, actually, I’m on vacation, no work today.
– Tu n’as pas de chien. – En fait, si.		– You don’t have a dog. – Actually, I do.
J’ai dit « oui », mais en fait je trouve que c’est une très mauvaise idée.		I said "yes," but as a matter of fact, I think it’s a terrible idea.
J’allais commencer à 9 heures, mais en fait je me suis réveillé trop tard.		I was going to start at 9am, but in fact I overslept.

Somewhat synonymous

à vrai dire – to tell (you) the truth
au contraire – on the contrary
au fond – actually
en l’occurrence – in the event
en réalité – in reality

Potential confusions

1) Many French students use en fait indiscriminately to mean "in fact," but this is often a mistake. Sometimes, the correct French translation is en effet.

2) Despite its seeming similarity, the expression au fait has an entirely different meaning.