fail

(fāl)

v., failed, fail·ing, fails.

v.intr.

1. To prove deficient or lacking; perform ineffectively or inadequately: failed to fulfill their promises; failed in their attempt to reach the summit.
2. To be unsuccessful: an experiment that failed.
3. To receive an academic grade below the acceptable minimum.
4. To prove insufficient in quantity or duration; give out: The water supply failed during the drought.
5. To decline, as in strength or effectiveness: The light began to fail.
6. To cease functioning properly: The engine failed.
7. To give way or be made otherwise useless as a result of excessive strain: The rusted girders failed and caused the bridge to collapse.
8. To become bankrupt or insolvent: Their business failed during the last recession.

v.tr.

1. To disappoint or prove undependable to: Our sentries failed us.
2. To abandon; forsake: His strength failed him.
3. To omit to perform (an expected duty, for example): "We must . . . hold . . . those horrors up to the light of justice. Otherwise we would fail our inescapable obligation to the victims of Nazism: to remember" (Anthony Lewis).
4. To leave undone; neglect: failed to wash the dishes.
5. 1. To receive an academic grade below the acceptable minimum in (a course, for example): failed algebra twice.
   2. To give such a grade of failure to (a student): failed me in algebra.

n.

1. Failure to deliver securities to a purchaser within a specified time.
2. Failure to receive the proceeds of a transaction, as in the sale of stock or securities, by a specified date.

idiom:

without fail

1. With no chance of failure: Be here at noon without fail.

[Middle English failen, from Old French faillir, from Vulgar Latin *fallīre, variant of Latin fallere, to deceive.]

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1. Banking. The inability of a bank to meet its credit obligations to other banks in private wire transfer systems, possibly causing settlement failures at other banks. This is known as Systemic Risk.

2. Securities. A trade in which delivery does not take place on the settlement date. If it is the fault of the seller, that is, the seller fails to present the securities, the trade is noted as a fail to deliver. If buyer fails to pay because securities have not been delivered by the seller's broker, it is a fail to receive. Fails normally occur when the buyer and seller disagree on whether the securities delivered meet the specifications of the purchase order.

verb

1. To prove deficient or insufficient: give out, run out. Idioms: fall short, run dry, run short. See excess/insufficiency/enough.
2. To be unsuccessful: choke, fall through. Informal fall down, flop. Slang bomb. Idioms: fail of success, fall short. See thrive/fail/exist.
3. To receive less than a passing grade: Informal flunk. See thrive/fail/exist.
4. To not do (something necessary): default, neglect, omit. See do/not do.
5. To lose strength or power: decline, degenerate, deteriorate, fade, flag², languish, sink, wane, waste (away), weaken. Informal fizzle (out). Idioms: go downhill, hit the skids. See increase/decrease, strong/weak.
6. To cease functioning properly: break down, give out. Slang conk out. See thrive/fail/exist.
7. To make or become unusable or inoperative: break, ruin. Slang bust. See help/harm/harmless.
8. To undergo sudden financial failure: break, bust, collapse, crash, go under. Informal fold. Idioms: go belly up, go bust, go on the rocks, go to the wall. See money.

v

Definition: abandon, forsake
Antonyms: capture, complete, deliver, finish, obtain, procure

v

Definition: be unsuccessful
Antonyms: accomplish, achieve, earn, gain, merit, obtain, prosper, reach, succeed, win

v

Definition: lose money
Antonyms: earn, gain, obtain, win

A transaction that has not been settled before a deadline.

Investopedia Says:
Presently, firms have three days after the date of a trade to settle stock transactions. Within this timeframe, securities and cash must be delivered to the clearing house for settlement. If firms are unable to meet this deadline a fail will occur. 

Settlement requirements for stock, options, futures contracts, forwards, and fixed-income securities differ.

Related Links:
Find out the various ways in which a broker can fill an order, which can affect costs. Understanding Order Execution
Ever wonder what happens behind the scenes when you buy or sell a stock? Read on and find out! The Nitty-Gritty Of Executing A Trade
For those who are new to futures but want a solid understanding of them, this tutorial explains what futures contracts are, how they work and why investors use them. Futures Fundamentals
An introduction to the world of options, covering everything from primary concepts to how options work and why you might use them. Options Basics Tutorial
Investing in bonds - What are they, and do they belong in your portfolio? Bond Basics Tutorial

IN BRIEF: v. - Get worse; Stop operating or functioning; Prove insufficient; Disappoint, prove undependable to; Become bankrupt or insolvent; Fall short in what is expected; Judge unacceptable; Be unsuccessful.

If you take risks, you may fail. But if you don't take risks, you will surely fail. The greatest risk of all is to do nothing. — Robert Goizueta

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

sign description: The back of the V-handshape slides across the palm of the opposite hand. The sign can also be made with the K-handshape.

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For a list of words related to fail, see:

• Curricula, Studies, Learning, and Tests - fail: (vb) receive grade indicating failure to pass a course

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See words rhyming with "fail."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Fail.

Dansk (Danish)
v. intr. - fejle, mislykkes, slå fejl, strande, svigte, gå fallit
v. tr. - skuffe, mangle, lade dumpe, dumpe
n. - manglende opfyldelse af aftale, dumpekandidat

idioms:

• fail in    mangle
• if all else fails    hvis alt andet slår fejl
• without fail    uden undtagelse

Nederlands (Dutch)
falen, wegsterven, stoppen, failliet gaan, in de steek laten, mankeren, nalaten, (laten) zakken, mislukken, spaak lopen, op zijn/-raken, afwijzen, afgewezen worden, onvoldoende, mislukking

Français (French)
v. intr. - être collé, échouer, (Comm) faire faillite, décliner, baisser (la vue), tomber en panne, lâcher (les freins), être coupé (de nourriture), (Agric) être mauvais (une récolte), (Méd) lâcher (le c¯ur)
v. tr. - refuser, recaler, être refusé à, manquer de (faire) défaut à qn, ne pas réussir à faire, laisser tomber (un ami), manquer à un engagement (envers), (Jur) ne pas comparaître (devant le juge)
n. - (École, Univ) échec

idioms:

• fail in    manquer à, échouer, faillir à
• if all else fails    en désespoir de cause
• without fail    sans faute, à coup sûr, immanquablement

Deutsch (German)
v. - nachlassen, scheitern, fehlschlagen, durchfallen, mißlingen, Bankrott machen, versagen, versäumen, im Stich lassen
n. - Ungenügend, schlechte Note

idioms:

• fail in    (seiner Pflicht) nicht nachkommen
• if all else fails    wenn alle Stricke reißen
• without fail    auf jeden Fall

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - αποτυγχάνω, δεν καταφέρνω (να), παύω να λειτουργώ, πέφτω λίγος, υπολείπομαι, απογοητεύω, διαψεύδω τις προσδοκίες, εγκαταλείπω, χάνω δύναμη, εξασθενίζω, απορρίπτομαι σε εξετάσεις, απορρίπτω (εξεταζόμενο), εξασθενώ, χρεοκοπώ, φαλίρω
n. - (καθομ.) βαθμός απόρριψης (μαθητή κ.λπ.)

idioms:

• fail in    αποτυγχάνω σε
• if all else fails    εάν όλα τα άλλα αποτύχουν
• without fail    (το) δίχως άλλο, οπωσδήποτε

Italiano (Italian)
fallire, non riuscire, essere bocciato, sbagliare, fare fiasco, venire meno, fare fallimento, guastarsi, interrompersi, mancare, non riuscire a, insufficienza, voto insufficiente

idioms:

• fail in    mancare a
• if all else fails    in caso estremo
• without fail    senza fallo

Português (Portuguese)
v. - falhar
n. - falha (f)

idioms:

• fail in    falhar em
• if all else fails    se tudo mais falhar
• without fail    com certeza

Русский (Russian)
терпеть неудачу, проиграть, не удаваться, подводить, испытывать недостаток, кончаться, терять силу, погасать, замирать, проваливаться, обанкротиться

idioms:

• fail in    не оправдать ожиданий, провалиться
• if all else fails    последняя надежда
• without fail    непременно

Español (Spanish)
v. intr. - frustrarse, acabarse, debilitarse, apagarse, cortarse
v. tr. - abandonar, dejar, frustrar, reprobar
n. - cero, insuficiente, nota insuficiente, falla, falta

idioms:

• fail in    faltar a, incumplir, no cumplir, fracasar
• if all else fails    si todo lo demás falla
• without fail    sin falta, seguro

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - misslyckas, stranda, slå fel (om skörd o.d.), bli kuggad, strejka, göra bankrutt, tryta, försämras
n. - kuggad (elev)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
失败, 忘记, 不及格, 辜负

idioms:

• fail in    失败, 缺少
• if all else fails    如果没有别的办法的话
• without fail    必定, 确然, 无疑

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. intr. - 失敗, 忘記, 不及格
v. tr. - 辜負, 不及格
n. - 不及格

idioms:

• fail in    失敗, 缺少
• if all else fails    如果沒有別的辦法的話
• without fail    必定, 確然, 無疑

한국어 (Korean)
v. intr. - 실패하다, 실수하다, 부족하다
v. tr. - 실망시키다, 떨어뜨리다, 저버리다
n. - 실패

idioms:

• fail in    (덕성이)모자라다
• without fail    ~틀림 없이, 꼭, 반드시

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 失敗する, しくじる, 落ちる, …しそこなう, …するのを怠る, 落第させる, 役に立たない, 期待を裏切る, 不足する, 衰える, 落第する, 仕損なう, 破産する, 怠る, 失望させる

idioms:

• fail in    失敗する
• without fail    間違いなく

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يفشل , يرسب في الإمتحان , يقصر (الاسم) فشل‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. intr. - ‮נכשל, נחלש, לא ביצע, פשט רגל‬
v. tr. - ‮הכשיל, פסל, איכזב, לא ביצע, פשט רגל‬
n. - ‮כישלון בבחינה‬

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