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Failing   /fˈeɪlɪŋ/   Listen
verb
Fail  v. t.  
1.
To be wanting to; to be insufficient for; to disappoint; to desert. "There shall not fail thee a man on the throne."
2.
To miss of attaining; to lose. (R.) "Though that seat of earthly bliss be failed."



Fail  v. i.  (past & past part. failed; pres. part. failing)  
1.
To be wanting; to fall short; to be or become deficient in any measure or degree up to total absence; to cease to be furnished in the usual or expected manner, or to be altogether cut off from supply; to be lacking; as, streams fail; crops fail. "As the waters fail from the sea." "Till Lionel's issue fails, his should not reign."
2.
To be affected with want; to come short; to lack; to be deficient or unprovided; used with of. "If ever they fail of beauty, this failure is not be attributed to their size."
3.
To fall away; to become diminished; to decline; to decay; to sink. "When earnestly they seek Such proof, conclude they then begin to fail."
4.
To deteriorate in respect to vigor, activity, resources, etc.; to become weaker; as, a sick man fails.
5.
To perish; to die; used of a person. (Obs.) "Had the king in his last sickness failed."
6.
To be found wanting with respect to an action or a duty to be performed, a result to be secured, etc.; to miss; not to fulfill expectation. "Take heed now that ye fail not to do this." "Either my eyesight fails, or thou look'st pale."
7.
To come short of a result or object aimed at or desired; to be baffled or frusrated. "Our envious foe hath failed."
8.
To err in judgment; to be mistaken. "Which ofttimes may succeed, so as perhaps Shall grieve him, if I fail not."
9.
To become unable to meet one's engagements; especially, to be unable to pay one's debts or discharge one's business obligation; to become bankrupt or insolvent; as, many credit unions failed in the late 1980's.



noun
Failing  n.  
1.
A failing short; a becoming deficient; failure; deficiency; imperfection; weakness; lapse; fault; infirmity; as, a mental failing. "And ever in her mind she cast about For that unnoticed failing in herself."
2.
The act of becoming insolvent of bankrupt.
Synonyms: See Fault.






Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48








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"Failing" Quotes from Famous Books



... perceptions told him that Grom would far rather see him rule the tribe, so long as he ruled it effectually, than be troubled with the task himself. But there were others in the tribe whom he suspected of being less disinterested—who were capable of becoming troublesome if ever he should find his strength failing. One of these, in particular, a gigantic, black-browed fellow by the name of Ne-boo, remotely akin to the deserter Mawg, was now watching him with eyes more keen and considerate than those of his companions. As Bawr became conscious of this inquiring, crafty ...
— In the Morning of Time • Charles G. D. Roberts

... no longer there. He saw her hat at a distance through the crowd, where he did not choose to follow, and he stuffed the flowers into his breast to give to her later. He expected to meet her somewhere in the evening; if not, he would try to find her at her aunt's house in town; failing that, he could send her the flowers, and trust her for some sort of ...
— Henry James, Jr. • William Dean Howells

... cake" and "pone"—two varieties of cornbread—were regularly eaten at breakfast and dinner. The standard dish for supper was cornmeal mush and milk. As cattle were not numerous, the housewife often lacked milk, in which case she fell back on her one never-failing resource—hominy; or she served the mush with sweetened water, molasses, the gravy of fried meat, or even bear's oil. Tea and coffee were long unknown, and when introduced they were likely to be scorned by the men as "slops" good enough perhaps for women ...
— The Old Northwest - A Chronicle of the Ohio Valley and Beyond, Volume 19 In - The Chronicles Of America Series • Frederic Austin Ogg

... She withdrew herself wholly from him. They were completely sundered. Toby was failing her. She was stone cold to him—cold to all ...
— Coquette • Frank Swinnerton

... some time with him, the love of adventure had taken him to the far west, and there he had hunted and shot for nearly three years, till a letter, long delayed on the way, entreated him to return to England, as his father's health was failing. He at once started for England, and found that his father was in a feeble state of health, but was still able to carry on the business. Frank saw, however, that he was unequal to the work, and so entered the office, working hard to make up for lost time. He was a good draughtsman, and was shortly ...
— Out on the Pampas - The Young Settlers • G. A. Henty


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