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Ab initio

//ˌæb ɪˈnɪʃ.i.oʊ// adv

Definitions

Adverb
  1. 1
    From the time when a law, legal right or decree, contract, ownership interest, partnership (etc.) comes into force.

    "As the Act was passed without the required quorum, the constitutional court struck down the Act and declared it to be void ab initio"

  2. 2
    Calculated from first principles, i.e. from basic laws without any further additional assumptions.

    "[…] 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. 3
    Taken with no prior qualifications.
Adverb
  1. 1
    at the beginning wordnet

Etymology

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

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