Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - fact of life

(facts of life) 1. You say that something which is not pleasant is a fact of life when there is nothing you can do to change it so you must accept it. Stress is a fact of life from time to time for all of us. N-COUNT 2. If you tell a child about the facts of life, you tell him or her about sexual intercourse and how babies are born. There comes a time when children need to know more than the basic facts of life. N-PLURAL: the N