fault

[fawlt]

noun

1. a defect or imperfection; flaw; failing.

   a fault in the brakes;

   a fault in one's character.

   Synonyms: shortcoming, frailty, blemish
   Antonyms: perfection, merit, strength, virtue

2. responsibility for failure or a wrongful act.

   It is my fault that we have not finished.

3. an error or mistake.

   a fault in addition.

4. a misdeed or transgression.

   to confess one's faults.

5. Sports.,  (in tennis, handball, etc.)

   1. a ball that when served does not land in the proper section of an opponent's court.

   2. a failure to serve the ball according to the rules, as from within a certain area.

6. Geology, Mining.,  a break in the continuity of a body of rock or of a vein, with dislocation along the plane of the fracture fault plane.

7. Manège.,  (of a horse jumping in a show) any of a number of improper executions in negotiating a jump, as a tick, knockdown, refusal, or run-out.

8. Electricity.,  a partial or total local failure in the insulation or continuity of a conductor or in the functioning of an electric system.

9. Hunting.,  a break in the line of scent; a losing of the scent; check.

10. Obsolete.,  lack; want.

verb (used without object)

1. to commit a fault; blunder; err.

2. Geology.,  to undergo faulting.

verb (used with object)

1. Geology.,  to cause a fault in.

2. to find fault with, blame, or censure.

fault

/ fɔːlt /

noun

1. an imperfection; failing or defect; flaw

2. a mistake or error

3. an offence; misdeed

4. responsibility for a mistake or misdeed; culpability

5. electronics a defect in a circuit, component, or line, such as a short circuit

6. geology a fracture in the earth's crust resulting in the relative displacement and loss of continuity of the rocks on either side of it

7. tennis squash badminton an invalid serve, such as one that lands outside a prescribed area

8. (in showjumping) a penalty mark given for failing to clear or refusing a fence, exceeding a time limit, etc

9. hunting an instance of the hounds losing the scent

10. deficiency; lack; want

11. 1. guilty of error; culpable

    2. perplexed

    3. (of hounds) having temporarily lost the scent

12. to seek out minor imperfections or errors (in); carp (at)

13. excessively

verb

1. geology to undergo or cause to undergo a fault

2. (tr) to find a fault in, criticize, or blame

3. (intr) to commit a fault

fault

1. A fracture in a rock formation along which there has been movement of the blocks of rock on either side of the plane of fracture. Faults are caused by plate-tectonic forces.

2. See more at normal fault reverse fault strike-slip fault thrust fault transform fault See Note at earthquake

fault

1. In geology, a place where sections of the crust of the Earth move relative to each other. (See earthquake and San Andreas fault.)

Faults tend to occur near the edges of tectonic plates.

Other Word Forms

• postfault noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of fault¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English faute, faulte, from Anglo-French, Middle French, from unattested Vulgar Latin fallita, noun use of feminine of unattested fallitus, for Latin falsus, past participle of fallere “to be wrong”

Word History and Origins

Origin of fault¹

C13: from Old French faute , from Vulgar Latin fallita (unattested), ultimately from Latin fallere to fail

A Closer Look

Bedrock, the solid rock just below the soil, is often cracked along surfaces known as planes. Cracks can extend up to hundreds of kilometers in length. When tensional and compressional stresses cause rocks separated by a crack to move past each other, the crack is known as a fault. Faults can be horizontal, vertical, or oblique. The movement can occur in the sudden jerks known as earthquakes. Normal faults, or tensional faults, occur when the rocks above the fault plane move down relative to the rocks below it, pulling the rocks apart. Where there is compression and folding, such as in mountainous regions, the rocks above the plane move upward relative to the rocks below the plane; these are called reverse faults. Strike-slip faults occur when shearing stress causes rocks on either side of the crack to slide parallel to the fault plane between them. Transform faults are strike-slip faults in which the crack is part of a boundary between two tectonic plates. A well-known example is the San Andreas Fault in California. Geologists use sightings of displaced outcroppings to infer the presence of faults, and they study faults to learn the history of the forces that have acted on rocks.

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. at fault,

   1. open to censure; blameworthy.

      to be at fault for a mistake.

   2. in a dilemma; puzzled.

      to be at fault as to where to go.

   3. (of hounds) unable to find the scent.

2. find fault, to seek and make known defects or flaws; complain; criticize.

   He constantly found fault with my behavior.

3. to a fault, to an extreme degree; excessively.

   She was generous to a fault.

see at fault; find fault; to a fault.

Synonym Study

Fault, failing, foible, weakness, vice imply shortcomings or imperfections in a person. Fault is the common word used to refer to any of the average shortcomings of a person; when it is used, condemnation is not necessarily implied: A quick temper is her greatest fault. Foible, failing, weakness all tend to excuse the person referred to. Of these foible is the mildest, suggesting a weak point that is slight and often amusing, manifesting itself in eccentricity rather than in wrongdoing: the foibles of artists. Weakness suggests that the person in question is unable to control a particular impulse, and gives way to self-indulgence: a weakness for pretty women. Failing is closely akin to fault, except that it is particularly applied to humanity at large, suggesting common, often venial, shortcomings: Procrastination and making excuses are common failings. Vice (which may also apply to a sin in itself, apart from a person: the vice of gambling ) is the strongest term, and designates a habit that is truly detrimental or evil.

Example Sentences

"Through no fault of our own, we have become the target of intense attacks and blackmail," he said.

Read more on Barron's

As for the argument one sometimes hears that this is harsh on the drivers because it's not their fault, that's not relevant.

Read more on BBC

However, defenders of the OBR say it is not the fault of the forecaster.

Read more on BBC

They admit their faults and their shortcomings, apologize for the past and for the future.

Read more on Salon

The study, published Nov. 19 in Science Advances and supported by National Science Foundation grants, introduces a new factor that could reshape how scientists interpret fault behavior linked to major earthquakes.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• blunder 
• crime 
• defect 
• error 
• failing 
• flaw 
• guilt 
• indiscretion 
• lapse 
• liability 
• misconduct 
• miscue 
• misdeed 
• negligence 
• offense 
• omission 
• oversight 
• responsibility 
• transgression 
• weakness 

When To Use

What does fault mean?

A fault is a defect, flaw, or imperfection in something, as in LaShona found the fault in the code that prevented the website from working correctly.Fault is also responsibility for a failure or wrongful act, as in It was Jason’s fault that the puppy escaped because he left the front door open.A fault is also an error or mistake, such as a fault in a solution to a math problem.To fault someone is to blame them for an error, as in I can’t fault my sister for wanting to be like me.Fault is commonly used in the idioms at fault and find fault. Someone who is at fault is guilty or responsible for something and could be blamed. Someone who finds fault exposes the flaws of a person or the defects of a product.Example: It’s not my fault that the slippery dish fell out of my hands and broke.