malfunction
Americannoun
-
malfunctions
plural
verb (used without object)
-
malfunctions,
present (3rd person singular)
-
malfunctioned,
past participle, past
-
malfunctioning
present participle
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
malfunctionsimple
-
malfunctionssimple
-
have malfunctionedperfect
-
has malfunctionedperfect
-
am malfunctioningprogressive
-
are malfunctioningprogressive
-
is malfunctioningprogressive
-
have been malfunctioningperfect progressive
-
has been malfunctioningperfect progressive
Past
-
malfunctionedsimple
-
had malfunctionedperfect
-
was malfunctioningprogressive
-
were malfunctioningprogressive
-
had been malfunctioningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of malfunction
Explanation
To malfunction is to fail to work properly. If your toaster spits out a charred, smoky mess no matter what setting it’s on, your toaster is definitely malfunctioning. When something functions, it works. Adding the prefix -mal (meaning "bad") to function indicates bad or unsuccessful functioning. When a computer malfunctions, you could lose your data. A malfunctioning car could cause an accident or leave you stranded. This word is typically used in reference to technology, tools, and gadgets. However, if you make a stupid mistake, you might joke that your brain has malfunctioned.
Vocabulary lists containing malfunction
"A Sound of Thunder" by Ray Bradbury
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A Thousand Splendid Suns
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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.
See Examples For:
When gene activation goes wrong, cells can malfunction and contribute to diseases, including cancer.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 23, 2026
We’ve had water treatment failures, chemical imbalances brought on by malfunction, E. coli contamination, and the people of Flint, Michigan, of course, appreciate the criticality of clean water better than anyone in the country.
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026
Shake Shack denied charging “no tip” fees after a viral TikTok appeared to show menu prices jumping when a customer declined a gratuity, blaming the error on a kiosk malfunction.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Earlier this year, Baidu's Apollo Go service suffered a software malfunction that left about 100 robotaxis stranded in Wuhan.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
Not as good as yesterday, but I lost some time to the drill malfunction.
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
Extremely structured to this day, if something throws off Freeman’s schedule, his “robot mind,” as he puts it, malfunctions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
Its report said Nintendo had "commented only in 2020, and not as soon as it was aware of the malfunctions", the Commerce Ministry and the court in Nanterre, outside Paris, said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026
In a tongue-in-cheek post to Instagram, Glass Animals - best known for their 2020 sleeper-hit Heat Waves - claimed culpability for the lunar lavatory malfunctions.
From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026
He policed brushback pitches with ardor and once called a night game for darkness when lighting malfunctions compromised visibility near home plate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2026
Didn’t you have the right to know where something came from, so that you knew what malfunctions might be in store?
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
The transmission malfunctioned in his 1978 boat, Miss Julie, which he also uses for crabbing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Actually, it’s Stuart from an alternative universe enlisting him to restore things with the help of a malfunctioned quantum interference device created by Sheldon, Leonard and Howard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
The vehicle had coasted through space but was not in exactly the correct orbit after one of its engines malfunctioned during an initial burn.
From Barron's ● May 22, 2026
The Russian pilot fired two missiles, the first of which missed rather than malfunctioned as claimed at the time.
From BBC ● May 20, 2026
I can’t believe in the middle of all this, you went and got malfunctioned.
From "Feed" by M.T. Anderson
Devices are at most risk when they are overcharged, malfunctioning or damaged, which can cause components to break down and release excess heat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
The director, recently freed from a malfunctioning elevator in a pithily Andersonian incident, made a brief appearance onstage with Murray in his regal white suit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
I have a similar complaint, but this relates to a toilet that is malfunctioning.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 10, 2026
A van driver who killed the passenger of a broken-down car on a smart motorway where the safety alert system was malfunctioning has been given a suspended sentence.
From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2026
But the autopilot on the plane was malfunctioning, and it had been switched off.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
