Noun: failure feyl-yur [N. Amer], fey-lee-u(r) [Brit]- An act that fails
"his failure to pass the test" - An event that does not accomplish its intended purpose
"the surprise party was a complete failure" - Lack of success
"he felt that his entire life had been a failure"; "that year there was a crop failure" - A person with a record of failing; someone who loses consistently
- loser, nonstarter, unsuccessful person, no-hoper [informal] - An unexpected omission
"he resented my failure to return his call"; "the mechanic's failure to check the brakes" - Inability to discharge all your debts as they come due
"fraudulent loans led to the failure of many banks"; - bankruptcy - Loss of ability to function normally
"kidney failure"
Derived forms: failures Type of: circs [Brit, informal], circumstances, destiny, disorder, fate, fortune, happening, insolvency, lot, luck, natural event, nonaccomplishment, nonachievement, occurrence, occurrent, omission, portion, skip, unfortunate, unfortunate person, upset Antonym: success Encyclopedia: Failure |