ab initio

English

Alternative forms

ab init

Etymology

From Latin ab (“from”) + initiō, ablative singular of initium (“beginning”).

Pronunciation
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˌæb ɪˈnɪʃ.i.oʊ/, /ˌæb əˈnɪt.i.oʊ/, /ˌɑb əˈnɪt.i.oʊ/

Adverb

ab initio

  1. (law) From the time when a legal document comes into force. [Early 17th century.][1]
  2. (sciences) Calculated from first principles, i.e. from basic laws without any further additional assumptions.
    • 1983, Monty Python, The meaning of life, at about 1h 15':
      […] this soul does not exist ab initio, as orthodox Christianity teaches; it has to be brought into existence by a process of guided self-observation. However, this is rarely achieved, owing to man's unique ability to be distracted from spiritual matters by everyday trivia.
  3. (of an academic course) Taken with no prior qualifications.
  • void ab initio

Translations

References
  1. “ab initio” in Lesley Brown, editor, The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 5th edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 4.
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