failure
failures
If you experience failure, things have not gone the way you'd hoped. I'm sorry to hear that your attempt to turn hay into gold has been a failure.
Failure can also mean when something suddenly stops working or when you don't do something that you're expected to. A power failure might create an opportunity for a romantic candlelight dinner. Your failure to pay the electric bill may lead to a lot of romantic candlelight dinners, as long as you at least paid the gas bill. Someone who has no success in life a failure, as is an effort that doesn't work like your failure of a presidential campaign.
Definitions of failure
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an act that fails“his failure to pass the test”
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types:
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failing, flunk
failure to reach a minimum required performance
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naught
complete failure
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loss
the act of losing someone or something
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backsliding, lapse, lapsing, relapse, relapsing, reversion, reverting
a failure to maintain a higher state
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error, misplay
(baseball) a failure of a defensive player to make an out when normal play would have sufficed
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out
(baseball) a failure by a batter or runner to reach a base safely in baseball
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nonconformance, nonconformity
failure to conform to accepted standards of behavior
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default, nonpayment, nonremittal
act of failing to meet a financial obligation
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default
loss due to not showing up
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capitulation, fall, surrender
the act of surrendering (usually under agreed conditions)
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recidivism
habitual relapse into crime
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putout
an out resulting from a fielding play (not a strikeout)
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strikeout
an out resulting from the batter getting three strikes
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nonobservance
a lack of conformity with law or custom or practice etc.
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type of:
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nonaccomplishment, nonachievement
an act that does not achieve its intended goal
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an event that does not accomplish its intended purpose“the surprise party was a complete failure”
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Antonyms:
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success
an event that accomplishes its intended purpose
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types:
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downfall, ruin, ruination
failure that results in a loss of position or reputation
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flame-out
a complete or conspicuous failure
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malfunction
a failure to function normally
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abortion, miscarriage
failure of a plan
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misfire, miss
a failure to hit (or meet or find etc)
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bust, fizzle, flop
a complete failure
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malformation, miscreation
something abnormal or anomalous
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breakdown, equipment failure
a cessation of normal operation
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defeat, licking
an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
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nonstarter
an idea or plan that has no chance of being successful
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blowout
a sudden malfunction of a part or apparatus
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stall
a malfunction in the flight of an aircraft in which there is a sudden loss of lift that results in a downward plunge
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finish
the downfall of someone (as of persons on one side of a conflict)
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bomb, dud, turkey
an event that fails badly or is totally ineffectual
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monstrosity
something hideous or frightful
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brake failure
brakes fail to stop a vehicle
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engine failure
engine does not run
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dud, misfire
an explosion that fails to occur
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outage
a temporary suspension of operation (as of computers)
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power failure, power outage
equipment failure resulting when the supply of power fails
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fault
(electronics) equipment failure attributable to some defect in a circuit (loose connection or insulation failure or short circuit etc.)
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heartbreaker
a narrow defeat or a defeat at the last minute
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lurch
a decisive defeat in a game (especially in cribbage)
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rout
an overwhelming defeat
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shutout, skunk
a defeat in a game where one side fails to score
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debacle, drubbing, slaughter, thrashing, trouncing, walloping, whipping
a sound defeat
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waterloo
a final crushing defeat
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whitewash
a defeat in which the losing person or team fails to score
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dysfunction
a failure to sustain social norms or expected conditions
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type of:
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happening, natural event, occurrence, occurrent
an event that happens
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success
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lack of success“he felt that his entire life had been a failure”“that year there was a crop failure”
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Antonyms:
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success
a state of prosperity or fame
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types:
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bankruptcy
a state of complete lack of some abstract property
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bank failure
the inability of a bank to meet its credit obligations
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crop failure
the failure of crops to produce a marketable surplus
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dead duck
something doomed to failure
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success
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a person with a record of failing; someone who loses consistently
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synonyms:
loser, nonstarter, unsuccessful person
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types:
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bankrupt, insolvent
someone who has insufficient assets to cover their debts
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flash in the pan
someone who enjoys transient success but then fails
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dud, flop, washout
someone who is unsuccessful
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underdog
one at a disadvantage and expected to lose
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type of:
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unfortunate, unfortunate person
a person who suffers misfortune
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an unexpected omission“he resented my failure to return his call”“the mechanic's failure to check the brakes”
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types:
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dashing hopes, disappointment
an act (or failure to act) that disappoints someone
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breach
a failure to perform some promised act or obligation
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copout
a failure to face some difficulty squarely
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breach of contract
a breach of a legal duty; failure to do something that is required in a contract
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breach of duty
a breach of due care
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loss of ability to function normally“kidney failure”
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types:
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coronary failure, heart failure
inability of the heart to pump enough blood to sustain normal bodily functions
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kidney failure, renal failure
inability of the kidneys to excrete wastes and to help maintain the electrolyte balance
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congestive heart failure
inability to pump enough blood to avoid congestion in the tissues
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heart attack
a sudden severe instance of abnormal heart function
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acute kidney failure, acute renal failure
renal failure associated with burns or other trauma or with acute infection or obstruction of the urinary tract
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chronic kidney failure, chronic renal failure
renal failure that can result from a variety of systemic disorders
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inability to discharge all your debts as they come due“fraudulent loans led to the failure of many banks”
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synonyms:
bankruptcy
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type of:
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insolvency
the lack of financial resources
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insolvency
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘failure'.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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Word Family
Vocabulary lists containing failure
The Distance Between Us
In this memoir, award-winning author Reyna Grande explores the immigrant experience as she reflects on how a childhood torn between parents and countries made her who she is.
Interpreter of Maladies
The title story of Jhumpa Lahiri's collection explores the way people try, and fail, to communicate with one another.
The Lost Hero
Although he is suffering from amnesia, Jason must embark on a quest with his friends Piper and Leo to rescue the goddess Hera.
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