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:
A former employee testified on Wednesday that some of Meta's safety tools for Facebook and Instagram were "designed to fail," contradicting the company's defense strategy in a landmark trial in California.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
He also said that he has "plans for any situation that may arise" should the talks fail.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
What these sales fail to capture is what people spend on services such as travel, recreation and entertainment.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
And he enforced antitrust laws because powerful economic actors sometimes fail to restrain themselves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
"And for Ishtar's sake, be careful. If you fail to care for this properly, you will have me to answer to!"
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
SK Hynix said the current share price fails to reflect its “intrinsic value.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
The opposition movement, she believes, fails to notice the hardship she sees at the bar—the women waiting for a spot at the shelter, or the regulars stretching a drink since their homes are empty.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
“This fails to provide any safeguards for Los Angeles taxpayers and most assuredly risks the city’s fiscal stability,” Councilmember Monica Rodriguez said after voting against the agreement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
If that appeal fails, the case will proceed to trial at the Baker County courthouse in Macclenny, just a few miles from where D.J.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
There are off-hour trips to silent museums, where the boy tries and fails to walk through galleries as quietly as his instructor does, cringing when each footfall echoes.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
"My first thought frankly is... they failed to make it in the US... essentially they failed to be A-listers in Hollywood."
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
Since his firing, several rounds of negotiations with Zelensky about his future have failed to land him in a new role.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
An experienced midfielder is key, with Tonali and Guimaraes gone, and Joao Palhinha has been mentioned after a deal for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg failed to materialise.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
The classic lineup featuring Meadowlark Lemon and Hubert “Geese” Ausbie had tried and failed to beat their perennial foils: the Washington Generals, playing that night as the New Jersey Reds.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026
It meant “thank you”—that much Penelope knew, from her failed attempts to get the children to say it—but what could Svetlana be thanking her for?
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
She said she did not regret her coverage as she would have been "failing to do the basics of my job" if she had not investigated the claims against him.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
BBC Panorama meets parents who receive maintenance and those who pay it, and asks whether the system is failing both them and their children.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
In his filings, he accused successor trustee Paul Kanin of failing to pay out cash Reiner claims he was owed as far back as fall 2023.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
Canadian officials have threatened to sue Stellantis for failing to meet its pledge to assemble the Jeep Compass in Brampton.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
He was failing her, and if he failed she would send him to the too-warm dream world.
From "Breadcrumbs" by Anne Ursu
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.
