noun
fault
fawlt
noun
1
Responsibility for a mistake or wrongdoing.
"It wasn't her fault that the flight was delayed."
2
A flaw, weakness, or shortcoming in a person, object, or system.
"Despite his faults, he was a loyal friend."
"Engineers traced the fault to a loose wire."
3
(geology) A fracture in rock along which the two sides have shifted relative to each other.
"The San Andreas Fault runs through much of California."
verb
1
To find something wrong with, or blame, someone or something.
"You can't fault her effort, even though the result wasn't perfect."
How to Use Fault
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA mistake, weakness, or the blame for something going wrong.
Common pairings
find fault with
at fault
a technical fault
Word Forms
faulted past tense, faults plural, faults singular
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Etymology
From Old French faute, ultimately from Vulgar Latin fallita, "a shortcoming", related to Latin fallere, "to deceive".