fallible
Americanadjective
-
(of persons) liable to err, especially in being deceived or mistaken.
-
liable to be erroneous or false; not accurate.
fallible information.
adjective
-
capable of being mistaken; erring
-
liable to mislead
Other Word Forms
- fallibility noun
- fallibleness noun
- fallibly adverb
Etymology
Origin of fallible
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin fallibilis, equivalent to Latin fall(ī) (passive of fallere “to deceive”) + -ibilis -ible
Explanation
As humans we are all fallible, because fallible means likely to make errors or fail. Nobody's perfect, after all. Fall down on the job and you're fallible. It's a forgiving way to say you screwed up. If a scientific experiment's data is fallible, that means you can't trust the numbers. More than just locking your keys in the car, fallible can allude to a lack of moral strength. If in addition to locking your keys in the car, you kissed your best friend's husband, you might try using "I'm fallible" as your defense.
Vocabulary lists containing fallible
100 SAT Words Beginning with "F"
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A Wrinkle in Time
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They Called Us Enemy
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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.
Clemency used to be a consistent failsafe for an often fallible system.
From Slate • Mar. 6, 2026
Stick shifts are also slower than their auto-shifted counterparts from 0-60 mph—due to the fleshy, fallible widgets sitting in the driver’s seat.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 6, 2026
Fogelman: And ultimately, we try and make everybody fallible, but also everybody kind of have a point of view and a place where they’re coming from.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2025
The film presents the cardinals as fallible human beings jostling for power.
From BBC • May 1, 2025
But it would not do to remind Tyrell that his favorite son was fallible.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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.
