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fail has 16 distinct synonyms spread across 6 of its 11 senses. Each sense below keeps its own list, because a synonym belongs to a meaning and not to a word: swapping one sense's substitute into another sense's sentence is how a thesaurus makes writing worse. Its 3 recorded opposites are succeed, manage, pass.
Counts are distinct word forms across every sense. A synonym that appears under three senses is counted once here and shown three times below, under each sense it belongs to.
fail to do something; leave something undone
“She failed to notice that her child was no longer in his crib”
be unsuccessful
“Where do today's public schools fail?”
disappoint, prove undependable to; abandon, forsake
“His sense of smell failed him this time”
be unable
“I fail to understand your motives”
2 of the 11 recorded senses carry no synonym, antonym or related term, so they are not shown above. Every sense, with its definition and examples, is on the full entry for fail.
Synonyms, antonyms and the broader and narrower relations for fail come from Princeton University’s WordNet. Full sources and licences.