(~s)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
Failure is a lack of success in doing or achieving something, especially in relation to a particular activity.
This policy is doomed to ~...
Three attempts on the British 200-metre record also ended in ~.
...feelings of ~.
? success
N-UNCOUNT
2.
If something is a ~, it is not a success.
The marriage was a ~ and they both wanted to be free of it...
His six-year transition programme has by no means been a complete ~.
? success
N-COUNT
3.
If you say that someone is a ~, you mean that they have not succeeded in a particular activity, or that they are unsuccessful at everything they do.
Elgar received many honors and much acclaim and yet he often considered himself a ~...
? success
N-COUNT
4.
Your ~ to do a particular thing is the fact that you do not do it, even though you were expected to do it.
...their ~ to get the product mix right.
N-UNCOUNT: N to-inf, oft poss N
5.
If there is a ~ of something, for example a machine or part of the body, it goes wrong and stops working or developing properly.
There were also several accidents mainly caused by engine ~s on take-off...
He was being treated for kidney ~...
N-VAR: with supp, oft n N
6.
If there is a ~ of a business or bank, it is no longer able to continue operating. (BUSINESS)
Business ~s rose 16% last month.
= collapse
N-VAR: with supp