fault (fɔːlt
)
Definitions
noun
- an imperfection; failing or defect; flaw
- a mistake or error
- an offence; misdeed
- responsibility for a mistake or misdeed; culpability
- electronics a defect in a circuit, component, or line, such as a short circuit
- geology a fracture in the earth's crust resulting in the relative displacement and loss of continuity of the rocks on either side of it
- tennis squash badminton an invalid serve, such as one that lands outside a prescribed area
- (in showjumping) a penalty mark given for failing to clear or refusing a fence, exceeding a time limit, etc
- hunting an instance of the hounds losing the scent
- deficiency; lack; want
- See at fault
- See find fault
- See to a fault
verb
- geology to undergo or cause to undergo a fault
- (tr) to find a fault in, criticize, or blame
- (intr) to commit a fault
Word Origin
C13: from Old French faute , from Vulgar Latin fallita (unattested), ultimately from Latin fallere to failSynonyms
View thesaurus entry=
mistake,
slip,
error,
offence,
blunder,
lapse,
negligence,
omission,
boob,
oversight,
slip-up,
indiscretion,
inaccuracy,
howler,
glitch,
error of judgment,
boo-boo,
barry or Barry Crocker
=
failing,
lack,
weakness,
defect,
deficiency,
flaw,
drawback,
shortcoming,
snag,
blemish,
imperfection,
Achilles heel,
weak point,
infirmity,
demerit,
=
misdeed,
failing,
wrong,
offence,
sin,
lapse,
misconduct,
wrongdoing,
trespass,
frailty,
misdemeanour,
delinquency,
transgression,
peccadillo,
Quotations
"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,But in ourselves"
Translations
- British English:
fault
If a bad or undesirable situation is your fault, you caused it or are responsible for it.There was no escaping the fact: it was all his fault.fɔːlt NOUN There was no escaping the fact: it was all his fault.
- Spanish:
defecto
nm
- French:
faute
nf
- German:
Schuld
nf
- Chinese: 故障 n
- Arabic: خَطَأ n
- Portuguese: culpa nf
- Russian: дефект nm
- Croatian: greška nf
- Czech: vina nf
- Danish: fejl nutr
- Dutch: storing nf
- Finnish: vika n
- Greek: ατέλεια nf
- Italian: colpa nf
- Japanese: 責任 n
- Korean: 과실 n
- Norwegian: feiltrinn nnt
- Polish: błąd nm
- Brazilian Portuguese: culpa nf
- European Spanish:
defecto
nm
- Swedish: fel nnt
- Thai: ข้อผิดพลาด n
- Turkish: hata n
- Vietnamese: lỗi n
Usage examples
Try as he might, Mikel could find no fault with Dace's plan.
, TREASON KEEP (2001)Yet while the greatest ground displacement along the fault happened in the north, the shaking there was much less severe than in the south.
New Scientist (2003)Critics were quick to find fault with the proposals, setting the stage for a contentious trade ministers ' meeting in Tokyo tomorrow.
Globe and Mail (2003)Safin struggled at first, losing the first three games in succession and even conceding the set 6-2 on a double fault.
Glasgow Herald (2001)Psychoanalysts, as winners, insist that `madness' is a result of some fault within the `mad' person's mind.
, BEYOND FEAR (2002)