fallibility

noun

fal·​li·​bil·​i·​ty ˌfa-lə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

: liability to err

Did you know?

You'll find this word showing up in discussions of eyewitness testimony at crime scenes, of lie detectors, and of critical airplane parts. Some of us are most familiar with the fallibility of memory, especially when we remember something clearly that turns out never to have happened. Being fallible is part of being human, and sometimes the biggest errors are made by those who are thought of as the most brilliant of all.

Examples of fallibility in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ritrovata is to be reminded afresh of the tangibility of film, not to mention its fallibility. —Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

Among the tanks, fighting vehicles, and armored carriers displayed at Victory Park in Moscow as examples of the United States’ military fallibility was a Bradley. —Seth Harp, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025

Once society’s fallibility becomes apparent, everything else comes into question. —Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2025

Already, doubts centered on AI fallibility have causes ripples of anxiety among tech investors. —Larry Light, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1608, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fallibility

• affability
• audibility
• bistability
• capability
• changeability
• contractility
• credibility
• culpability
• disability
• disutility
• durability
• feasibility