as in reliable
not likely to fail
flowers have been traditionally regarded as the fail-safe gift for Valentine's Day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in precaution
a measure taken to preclude loss or injury
there are so many fail-safes built into the system that a highly unlikely series of mistakes would have to be made before failure could occur
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fail-safe
Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
There was even a fail-safe: if the award fell short, other federal funds or profits from Diablo Canyon’s final year could cover the difference.
—Calmatters, Oc Register, 12 Aug. 2025
Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2023
Shop Now 10 Navy Blue In areas with strict historic guidelines, navy blue is often a fail-safe.
—Elle Decor Editors, ELLE Decor, 17 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for fail-safe
Adjective
Those who are maintaining AGI will realize that extraordinary measures of having fail-safe equipment and operations will be greatly needed.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
There was even a fail-safe: if the award fell short, other federal funds or profits from Diablo Canyon’s final year could cover the difference.
—Calmatters, Oc Register, 12 Aug. 2025
Noun
The idea was to make bank oversight both stricter and more fail-safe.
—Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2023
Shop Now 10 Navy Blue In areas with strict historic guidelines, navy blue is often a fail-safe.
—Elle Decor Editors, ELLE Decor, 17 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for fail-safe
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fail-safe
Adjective
-
Throughout Amorim’s tenure, United’s wide combinations have been present, but other tactical problems, poor execution and the lack of a reliable goalscorer have impacted their productivity.—
Ahmed Walid,
New York Times,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Those events underscored the need for more reliable smoke management tools.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Simpson called his family to drive him to the hospital as a precaution.—
David Chiu,
PEOPLE,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Other than making sure police are contacted, workers are instructed to take safety precautions and make sure that families understand the risk involved with the highly potent illicit drug.—
Laura Bauer,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
But jumping feet-first onto every passing bandwagon is a surefire recipe for disaster.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
-
The bright blue light emitted from the device is a surefire way to disrupt your sleep patterns even more than your long travel day.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
24 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Padlocks, sickles and other objects made of iron, a metal said to possess anti-demonic powers, were stashed in the grave as preventives.—
Franz Lidz,
New York Times,
5 Sep. 2023
-
But although human vaccines function primarily as preventives, offering immunity to animals such as black-footed ferrets can be a conservation strategy of last resort.—
Katherine J. Wu,
The Atlantic,
15 June 2023
Adjective
-
Accuracy, Bias, and Human Oversight Matter Biometric systems aren’t infallible.—
Alonzo Martinez,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
-
By contrast, a collaboration tool doesn’t need to be anywhere close to infallible to be useful.—
David Autor,
The Atlantic,
24 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fail-safe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fail-safe. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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