to a fault

Idioms  

1. Excessively, extremely, as in He was generous to a fault. This phrase, always qualifying an adjective, has been so used since the mid-1700s. Indeed, Oliver Goldsmith had this precise usage in The Life of Richard Nash (1762).

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

to a fault

“I don’t believe in excommunicating anything, but I’m, to a fault, aggressively not on-screen. I carry a phone, but I’m legendary for being the hardest person to get a hold of.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

Mr. Pence is courtly, and chivalrous perhaps to a fault.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026

Heathrow Express, which normally runs from Paddington to the airport every 15 minutes, is closed in both directions due to a fault with the signalling system, according to the service's website.

From BBC ● May 30, 2026

You are, almost to a fault, the caretaker of your loved ones.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 17, 2026

He was a strong and gifted athlete, charming, smart, and immensely good-looking–"handsome almost to a fault," in the description of William H. Cropper, "an Adonis" in the words of another admirer.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson