- [countable] the result of an exam in which a person is not successful
- I got three passes and one fail.
- [countable, uncountable] (informal) a mistake or lack of success in doing something
- The show was an epic fail.
- For the sake of that potential, I'm willing to put up with some fail.
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French faillir (verb), faille (noun), based on Latin fallere ‘deceive’.
Idioms
See fail in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionarywithout fail
- when you tell somebody to do something without fail, you are telling them that they must do it
- I want you here by two o'clock without fail.
- always
- He hands in his assignment every week without fail.
Grammar Point fail / failurefail / failureThis use of fail as a noun instead of failure in a sense that does not just apply to exams has become more common in informal language in the 21st century. A similar case is reveal
- We have to wait for the final chapter for the big reveal.
Check pronunciation:
fail