fail
Americanverb (used without object)
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fails,
present (3rd person singular)
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failed,
past participle, past
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failing
present participle
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to fall short of success or achievement in something expected, attempted, desired, or approved.
The experiment failed because of poor planning.
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to receive less than the passing grade or mark in an examination, class, or course of study.
He failed in history.
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to be or become deficient or lacking; be insufficient or absent; fall short.
Our supplies failed.
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to dwindle, pass, or die away.
The flowers failed for lack of rain.
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to lose strength or vigor; become weak.
His health failed after the operation.
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to become unable to meet or pay debts or business obligations; become insolvent or bankrupt.
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(of a building member, structure, machine part, etc.) to break, bend, crush, or be otherwise destroyed or made useless because of an excessive load.
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to stop functioning or operating.
The electricity failed during the storm.
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Slang.
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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!
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to be embarrassingly incompetent, stupid, etc..
She fails at life. I just failed at walking and fell on my face.
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to be bad or of inferior quality.
The play is terrible—even the music fails.
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verb (used with object)
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fails,
present (3rd person singular)
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failed,
past participle, past
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failing
present participle
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to be unsuccessful in the performance or completion of.
He failed to do his duty.
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(of some expected or usual resource) to prove of no use or help to.
His friends failed him. Words failed her.
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to receive less than a passing grade or mark in.
He failed history.
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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
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Slang.
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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.
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the condition or quality resulting from having failed in this way.
His online post is full of fail.
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a person who fails in this way.
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Stock Exchange.
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a stockbroker's inability to deliver or receive security within the required time after sale or purchase.
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such an undelivered security.
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Obsolete. failure as to performance, occurrence, etc.
interjection
adjective
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unsuccessful; failed.
a totally fail policy.
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Slang.
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of or noting an embarrassing or humorous mistake, humiliating situation, etc..
the top 100 funniest fail photos on the internet.
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embarrassingly incompetent, stupid, etc.
Why am I so fail?
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very bad or of inferior quality.
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idioms
verb
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to be unsuccessful in an attempt (at something or to do something)
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(intr) to stop operating or working properly
the steering failed suddenly
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to judge or be judged as being below the officially accepted standard required for success in (a course, examination, etc)
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(tr) to prove disappointing, undependable, or useless to (someone)
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(tr) to neglect or be unable (to do something)
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(intr) to prove partly or completely insufficient in quantity, duration, or extent
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(intr) to weaken; fade away
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(intr) to go bankrupt or become insolvent
noun
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a failure to attain the required standard, as in an examination
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definitely; with certainty
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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failsimple
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failssimple
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have failedperfect
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has failedperfect
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am failingprogressive
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are failingprogressive
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is failingprogressive
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have been failingperfect progressive
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has been failingperfect progressive
Past
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failedsimple
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had failedperfect
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was failingprogressive
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were failingprogressive
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had been failingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fail
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English failen, from Anglo-French, Old French faillir, from unattested Vulgar Latin fallīre, for Latin fallere “to disappoint, deceive”
Explanation
The verb fail describes something that stops working, like brakes in a car that fail, or is found to be unacceptable, like restaurants that fail their inspection for cleanliness. The verb fail comes from the Old French word faillir, meaning “be lacking,” “miss,” or “not succeed.” You can fail an exam, which means you didn't get at least a minimum number of points to pass. You can fail to live up to your potential, meaning you aren't able to meet expectations. When businesses fail, it means financial problems force them to close.
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.
See Examples For:
Revenue and profit forecasts fail to justify the hype baked into Moderna’s share price, according to Citi’s analysts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
The problem stems from a cockpit software update to the 737 MAX that can cause an automated navigation feature to fail when planes shift their approach to landing.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
Justin Herbert and the Chargers offense fail to fully capitalize on five forced turnovers by the defense in a demoralizing 24-16 loss to the Buffalo Bills.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
The six-month stretch from November to April that usually produces the best stock-market returns may fail to do so this time around.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
“If we fail to prepare,” Duke would remind his teammates, “then we are preparing to fail!”
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
I asked Morewedge if viral robot fails were, counterintuitively, good PR for the industry.
From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026
But though “Primetime” fails to be a deservedly introspective analysis of its subject matter, it does tee up fair questions about its own existence.
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026
But the report only briefly mentions grade inflation—which it calls a “flattening of distinction”—and fails to connect how coddling students leaves them less prepared for the workplace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
When Sen. Alan Simpson quotes from “Othello” in defense of Thomas, he uses Shakespeare’s lyrical authority but fails to realize that he is in fact invoking the false words of the tragedy’s villain, Iago.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
Peter’s movie-watching experiment is a perfect example of what happens when mind reading fails.
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
US convicted murderer Christa Pike is in hospital and being given "life-saving measures" after Tennessee authorities failed in their attempt to execute her by lethal injection.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
That effort failed to draw sufficient political support, spurring those groups to change course.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
They weigh the First Amendment and due process rights at stake and why the administration’s national security argument failed to hold up in court.
From Slate ● Oct. 1, 2026
Instead, King wanted to know how the more experienced climber of the group, Conrad Anker, developed the discipline to call off a failed attempt just 300 feet below the summit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
He remembered what Leigh the Bard had said would happen if he failed.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
When Credit Suisse ended up almost failing, in part because of the plunging value of its foreign units, Swiss lawmakers determined that cushion wasn’t enough.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
Environmental advocates are accusing regulators at the State Water Resources Control Board of failing to do enough to prevent the river from running dry.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
A separate police investigation is under way into seven members of the French armed forces for allegedly failing to come to the help of the migrants on the night of the disaster.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
A financial crisis in Europe led investors to dump American railway bonds, and Jay Cooke and Co. went bankrupt, a shock to Wall Street on the scale of JPMorgan failing today.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
“I’m afraid it will be too disagreeable to you,” said Meg, trying to look offended and failing entirely.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
