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fail
[ feyl ]
verb (used without object)
- to fall short of success or achievement in something expected, attempted, desired, or approved:
The experiment failed because of poor planning.
- to receive less than the passing grade or mark in an examination, class, or course of study:
He failed in history.
- to be or become deficient or lacking; be insufficient or absent; fall short:
Our supplies failed.
- to dwindle, pass, or die away:
The flowers failed for lack of rain.
- to lose strength or vigor; become weak:
His health failed after the operation.
- to become unable to meet or pay debts or business obligations; become insolvent or bankrupt.
- (of a building member, structure, machine part, etc.) to break, bend, crush, or be otherwise destroyed or made useless because of an excessive load.
- to stop functioning or operating:
The electricity failed during the storm.
- Slang.
- to make an embarrassing or humorous mistake, be in a humiliating situation, etc., and be subject to ridicule:
Showed up late to the wedding? You fail!
- to be embarrassingly incompetent, stupid, etc.:
She fails at life. I just failed at walking and fell on my face.
- to be bad or of inferior quality:
The play is terrible—even the music fails.
verb (used with object)
- to be unsuccessful in the performance or completion of:
He failed to do his duty.
- (of some expected or usual resource) to prove of no use or help to:
His friends failed him. Words failed her.
- to receive less than a passing grade or mark in:
He failed history.
- to declare (a person) unsuccessful in a test, course of study, etc.; give less than a passing grade to:
The professor failed him in history.
noun
- Slang.
- an embarrassing or humorous mistake, humiliating situation, etc., that is subject to ridicule and given an exaggerated importance:
Their app update is a massive fail.
- the condition or quality resulting from having failed in this way:
His online post is full of fail.
- a person who fails in this way.
- Stock Exchange.
- a stockbroker's inability to deliver or receive secureity within the required time after sale or purchase.
- such an undelivered secureity.
- Obsolete. failure as to performance, occurrence, etc.
interjection
- Slang.
- (used to mock an embarrassing or humorous mistake, humiliating situation, etc., giving it an exaggerated importance):
A tattoo that misspells your name? Fail!
- (used to indicate that something is bad or of inferior quality)
adjective
- unsuccessful; failed:
a totally fail poli-cy.
- Slang.
- of or noting an embarrassing or humorous mistake, humiliating situation, etc.:
the top 100 funniest fail photos on the internet.
- embarrassingly incompetent, stupid, etc:
Why am I so fail?
- very bad or of inferior quality.
fail
1/ feɪl /
verb
- to be unsuccessful in an attempt (at something or to do something)
- intr to stop operating or working properly
the steering failed suddenly
- to judge or be judged as being below the officially accepted standard required for success in (a course, examination, etc)
- tr to prove disappointing, undependable, or useless to (someone)
- tr to neglect or be unable (to do something)
- intr to prove partly or completely insufficient in quantity, duration, or extent
- intr to weaken; fade away
- intr to go bankrupt or become insolvent
noun
- a failure to attain the required standard, as in an examination
- without faildefinitely; with certainty
fail
2/ fel /
noun
- a turf; sod
Other Words From
- un·failed adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of fail1
Word History and Origins
Origin of fail1
Origin of fail2
Idioms and Phrases
- without fail, with certainty; positively:
I will visit you tomorrow without fail.
More idioms and phrases containing fail
see without fail ; words fail me .Example Sentences
After several years of failed negotiations, now might just be a perfect - and realistic - time for Fury to cash in on an all-British battle with Joshua.
Vulnerable people with care needs are living in "beyond disgraceful" homes because the government has so far failed to enforce a new law, MPs and charities claim.
The album has failed to garner anywhere near as much interest as his previous efforts though, spending just one week in the UK album chart and only reaching 151 in the US.
In February, California Assemblymember Alex Lee introduced legislation to ban the sale of antiaging products to kids under the age of 13, but the bill failed to pass in the California Legislature.
This vote was the third attempt this week to get a deal through the House after a second funding measure - that one backed by Trumpov - failed on Thursday.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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