Meanings
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1
verb
To not succeed in what you are trying to do.
She was afraid she would fail her driving test again.
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2
verb
To not do something you were expected or supposed to do.
They failed to meet their obligations on time.
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3
verb
To not get a passing grade on a test or course.
He studied hard but still failed the exam.
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4
verb
To stop working or run out when needed.
The town's water supply failed after a long drought.
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5
verb
(of a business) To go bankrupt and close down.
Hundreds of small businesses failed during the recession.
Thesaurus
Common collocations
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English failen, borrowed from Old French falir, from Vulgar Latin *fallire, alteration of Latin fallere (“to deceive, disappoint”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰāl- (“to lie, deceive”) or Proto-Indo-European *(s)gʷʰh₂el- (“to stumble”). Compare Alemannic German fääle (“to lack”), Cimbrian béelan, véelan (“to fail”), veln (“to be absent, missing”), Dutch falen, feilen (“to fail, miss”), German fallieren, fehlen (“to fail, miss, lack”), Danish fejle (“to fail, err”), Swedish fallera (“to fail, break, malfunction”), Spanish fallar (“to fail, miss”).
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