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⏮️ From the start ⚖️ At the beginning
in initio

in initio

9.9
From the start with no legal effect
  • idiom
  • /ɪn ɪˈnɪʃioʊ/
  • Jargon
translation icon : desde el principio
  • The lawyer argued that the contract was void in initio due to fraud.

Examples

  • If a law is unconstitutional in initio, it has no legal effect from the start.

  • The judge ruled that the agreement was invalid in initio because of a legal error.

  • The contract was declared void in initio.

  • The judge ruled that the agreement was invalid in initio.

  • The judge ruled that the agreement was invalid in initio because of a legal error.

  • The lawyer argued that the contract was void in initio due to fraud.

  • If a law is unconstitutional in initio, it has no legal effect from the start.

Synonyms

at first
vsin initio
984 1.0

In the beginning before things change

means from the start in legal settings and does not imply later change
to begin with
vsin initio
274 2.3

At the start before anything else happens

means something exists from the very start in legal or formal use
in the beginning
vsin initio
246 1.4

At the start of something

is specific to legal contexts rather than general narrative language
from the get-go
vsin initio
  • Informal
52 6.6

Right from the very start

is used mainly in legal contexts rather than informal conversation
from the word go
vsin initio
  • Informal
3 5.3

From the very beginning of something

is used mainly in formal legal contexts rather than casual speech
ab initio
vsin initio
  • Formal
9.9

From the beginning

has the same meaning but is used especially in legal contexts

Antonyms

afterward
  • US
204 1.1

At a later time

later
1.0

Happening after something else in time

How Early

ab initio
  • Formal
9.9
in initio
  • Jargon
9.9
from the get-go
  • Informal
52 6.6

Surface Forms

in initio main

Morphology

in + initio

Compositionally 'in' + 'initio' yields 'in the beginning' and thus the meaning 'from the start', so if a learner truly knows the Latin noun 'initio' the sense is derivable. However, 'initio' is a Latin, non‑native lexical item and the phrase is a specialized, fossilized legalism, so an average B1 learner (even knowing 'in') is unlikely to recognize or generalize the register‑specific use without prior exposure.

Etymology

In initio is a Latin phrase that literally means 'at the beginning'. In law it was used to say a contract or rule was invalid 'from the start', so it had no legal effect from the very beginning.