Fail word meaning and definition

[verb] prove insufficient; "The water supply for the town failed after a long drought"
[verb] get worse; "Her health is declining"
[verb] stop operating or functioning; "The engine finally went"; "The car died on the road"; "The bus we travelled in broke down on the way to town"; "The coffee maker broke"; "The engine failed on the way to town"; "her eyesight went after the accident"
[verb] disappoint, prove undependable to; abandon, forsake; "His sense of smell failed him this time"; "His strength finally failed him"; "His children failed him in the crisis"
[verb] become bankrupt or insolvent; fail financially and close; "The toy company went bankrupt after the competition hired cheap Mexican labor"; "A number of banks failed that year"
[verb] fall short in what is expected; "She failed in her obligations as a good daughter-in-law"
[verb] fail to get a passing grade; "She studied hard but failed nevertheless"; "Did I fail the test?"
[verb] judge unacceptable; "The teacher failed six students"
[verb] be unsuccessful; "Where do today's public schools fail?"; "The attempt to rescue the hostages failed miserably"
[verb] fail to do something; leave something undone; "She failed to notice that her child was no longer in his crib"; "The secretary failed to call the customer and the company lost the account"
[verb] be unable; "I fail to understand your motives"

\Fail\v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Failed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Failing}.] [F. failir, fr. L. fallere, falsum, to deceive, akin to E. fall. See {Fail}, and cf. {Fallacy}, {False}, {Fault}.] 1. To be wanting; to fall short; to be or become deficient in any measure or degree up to total absence; to cease to be furnished in the usual or expected manner, or to be altogether cut off from supply; to be lacking; as, streams fail; crops fail. As the waters fail from the sea. --Job xiv. 11. Till Lionel's issue fails, his should not reign. --Shak. 2. To be affected with want; to come short; to lack; to be deficient or unprovided; -- used with of. If ever they fail of beauty, this failure is not be attributed to their size. --Berke. 3. To fall away; to become diminished; to decline; to decay; to sink. When earnestly they seek Such proof, conclude they then begin to fail. --Milton. 4. To deteriorate in respect to vigor, activity, resources, etc.; to become weaker; as, a sick man fails. 5. To perish; to die; -- used of a person. [Obs.] Had the king in his last sickness failed. --Shak. 6. To be found wanting with respect to an action or a duty to be performed, a result to be secured, etc.; to miss; not to fulfill expectation. Take heed now that ye fail not to do this. --Ezra iv. 22. Either my eyesight fails, or thou look'st pale. --Shak. 7. To come short of a result or object aimed at or desired; to be baffled or frusrated. Our envious foe hath failed. --Milton. 8. To err in judgment; to be mistaken. Which ofttimes may succeed, so as perhaps Shall grieve him, if I fail not. --Milton. 9. To become unable to meet one's engagements; especially, to be unable to pay one's debts or discharge one's business obligation; to become bankrupt or insolvent.
\Fail\, v. t. 1. To be wanting to; to be insufficient for; to disappoint; to desert. There shall not fail thee a man on the throne. --1 Kings ii. 4. 2. To miss of attaining; to lose. [R.] Though that seat of earthly bliss be failed. --Milton.
\Fail\, n. [OF. faille, from failir. See {Fail}, v. i.] 1. Miscarriage; failure; deficiency; fault; -- mostly superseded by failure or failing, except in the phrase without fail. ``His highness' fail of issue.'' --Shak. 2. Death; decease. [Obs.] --Shak.

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