FAILURE

n. 1 failing, default, non-performance, remissness; neglect, omission, dereliction, deficiency His failure to do his duty resulted in a court martial 2 breakdown, collapse, discontinuance, miscarriage, loss; decline, decay, deterioration Power disruptions are caused by the failure of the national grid 3 loser, non-starter, incompetent, also-ran, nonentity, Colloq flop, fizzle, damp squib, dud, lemon, washout, dead duck, US lead balloon He was an utter failure as a violinist 4 bankruptcy, ruin, insolvency, downfall, crash, Colloq folding Bank failures increased owing to bad loans and other poor investments