Fault

/fɔːlt/ · noun

Meaning

(typically uncountable) Culpability; the responsibility for a blameworthy event..

Definitions by Sense

1. (typically uncountable) Culpability; the responsibility for a blameworthy event.
2. A defect, imperfection, or weakness; more severe than a flaw.
3. A mistake or error.
4. A point at which something is divided, interrupted, or disconnected.
5. (obsolete) want; lack; absence
6. (transitive) To criticize, blame or find fault with something or someone.
7. (intransitive, geology) To fracture.
8. (intransitive) To commit a mistake or error.

Example Sentences

No, don't blame yourself. It's my fault that we lost the game.

I told them the pie was still too hot. If they burn their tongues, that's their fault.

The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves, that we are underlings.

A police official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that a note found at the scene addressed to Ms. Spade's 13-year-old daughter indicated, among other things, that what had happened was not the child’s fault.

How many more innocent people and kids gotta get killed by these police, man? / And then it's always the victim's fault

one, it pleases me, for fault of a better, to call my friend

For that, says he, I ne'er will fault thee / But for humbleness exalt thee.

"There will a team over there [he waves towards York's Rail Operating Centre] like flight engineers, maintaining it and faulting it from a ROC rather than a van by the side of the track."

Synonyms for fault

Antonyms for fault

Related Words

Word Forms

• faults
• faulting
• faulted

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

Practice and Learn More

Frequently Asked Questions