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Synonyms

malfunction

American  
[mal-fuhngk-shuhn] / mælˈfʌŋk ʃən /

noun

  1. failure to function properly.

    a malfunction of the liver; the malfunction of a rocket.

verb (used without object)

  1. to fail to function properly.

malfunction British  
/ mælˈfʌŋkʃən /

verb

  1. (intr) to function imperfectly or irregularly or fail to function

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. failure to function or defective functioning

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of malfunction

First recorded in 1925–30; mal- + function

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"After investigation, preliminary findings suggest the cause was system malfunction," police added, without specifying how many cars were impacted.

From Barron's

And unlike classical bits, qubits are particularly sensitive to changes in their environment—anything from heat to electromagnetic interference—that can throw their fragile quantum states into disarray and cause a computer to malfunction.

From Barron's

To do so, Reddick had to overcome a malfunctioning battery and a large deficit in the final 50 laps.

From Los Angeles Times

The party had weak local roots, "a malfunctioning party machine" and was mired in legal troubles, she told AFP.

From Barron's

They say all the bodies were found after the helicopter went down due to a "technical malfunction" in Qatar's territorial waters on Sunday.

From BBC

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.