fail
     v 1: fail to do something; leave something undone; "She failed to
          notice that her child was no longer in his crib"; "The
          secretary failed to call the customer and the company
          lost the account" [syn: {neglect}]
     2: be unsuccessful; "Where do today's public schools fail?";
        "The attempt to rescue the hostages failed miserably"
        [syn: {go wrong}, {miscarry}] [ant: {succeed}]
     3: disappoint, prove undependable to; abandon, forsake; "His
        sense of smell failed him this time"; "His strength
        finally failed him"; "His children failed him in the
        crisis" [syn: {betray}]
     4: stop operating or functioning; "The engine finally went";
        "The car died on the road"; "The bus we travelled in broke
        down on the way to town"; "The coffee maker broke"; "The
        engine failed on the way to town"; "her eyesight went
        after the accident" [syn: {go bad}, {give way}, {die}, {give
        out}, {conk out}, {go}, {break}, {break down}]
     5: be unable; "I fail to understand your motives" [ant: {pull
        off}]
     6: judge unacceptable; "The teacher failed six students" [ant:
        {pass}]
     7: fail to get a passing grade; "She studied hard but failed
        nevertheless"; "Did I fail the test?" [syn: {flunk}, {bomb},
         {flush it}] [ant: {pass}]
     8: fall short in what is expected; "She failed in her
        obligations as a good daughter-in-law"; "We must not fail
        his obligation to the victims of the Holocaust"
     9: become bankrupt or insolvent; fail financially and close;
        "The toy company went bankrupt after the competition hired
        cheap Mexican labor"; "A number of banks failed that year"
     10: prove insufficient; "The water supply for the town failed
         after a long drought" [syn: {run out}, {give out}]
     11: get worse; "Her health is declining"
Source: WordNet® 2.0