au fait

UK/ˌəʊˈfeɪ/US/ˌoʊˈfeɪ/

adjective

Being familiar with or informed about something.

“Are you au fait with the rules of the game?”

Meanings

adjectiveau fait (comparative more au fait, superlative most au fait)

comparative more au fait · superlative most au fait

  1. Being familiar with or informed about something.

    Are you au fait with the rules of the game?

    4 more examples

    The Chevalier was, as usual, au fait at all the anecdotes of the court, which had been exceedingly gay, owing to the visit of Madame de Savoie and her daughter, the Princess Marguerite.

    1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XV, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume II, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 175

    Now there is father; he is au fait in all these matters; has a theory for every case of whooping-cough, – and a mission school.

    1871, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, “The Silent Partner”, in Popular American Literature of the 19th Century, →ISBN, page 857

    In that case, it would help to have a benevolent deity who is au fait with those complexities — but that there is such a deity is a feature of Stoic theology.

    1999, R.J. Hankinson, The Cambridge History of Hellenistic Philosophy, →ISBN, page 535

    This may sound needless to the professional who is au fait with the history and direction of the investigation.

    2003, D R J Laming, Understanding Human Motivation: What Makes People Tick?, →ISBN, page 4

    Synonyms: acquainted, at home, conversant, familiar

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveBeing familiar with or informed about something.

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivebeing up to particular standard or level especially in being up to date in knowledge

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Frenchau fait
  2. Englishau fait

Borrowed from French au fait (literally “at the fact”).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

au fait. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/au%20fait

MLA

“au fait.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/au%20fait. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “au fait,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/au%20fait.

Source: au fait on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.