failings

noun

plural of failing
as in weaknesses
a defect in character we could talk about your failings, but it would take all night

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of failings In the documentation, the company is candid about its failings. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 14 Oct. 2026 The Army report highlighted how the air traffic controller at Reagan National Airport could have prevented the crash, but also acknowledged the military’s own failings and other contributing factors. — ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026 The Army report highlighted how the air traffic controller in the tower at Reagan National Airport could have prevented the crash, but also acknowledged the military’s own failings. — Josh Funk, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026 These reported failings include understaffing, undertrained employees, and failure to listen to parental concerns, the BBC reported at the time. — Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 22 Sep. 2026 Sussman is inclined to see such preferences as further evidence of capitalism’s moral failings. — Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026 Following Tuesday’s inquest, Metropolitan Police said that an internal review had found failings in its investigation into Heklina’s death but disputed claims that homophobia played a part in how its investigation was handled. — Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2026 Modern interpreters have read his 10 heads as signifying his vast knowledge of 10 sacred texts, or alternately his 10 ethical failings, but the Ramayana account describes him as 10-headed from birth. — Charles Preston, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026 Cycling’s stakeholders must reflect on failings that led to Fin Tarling’s death. — Chris Marshall-Bell, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for failings
  1. weaknesses
  2. faults
  3. sins
  4. shortcomings
Noun
  • However, board members also identified weaknesses, including the district’s longstanding problem with decaying school buildings.
    — Scott Travis, Sun Sentinel, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Google DeepMind researchers have used AI agents to discover cryptographic techniques that expose weaknesses in legacy RSA encryption up to 1,600 times faster than previous methods.
    — Muskan Bhatia, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of weaknesses
Noun
  • Trump faults candidates and Fox News, not himself, for Republican losses.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Public reports do not say whether that trade-off played any part in LINK’s faults.
    — Wanjiku Chebet Kanjumba, The Conversation, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of faults
Noun
  • Some would argue that Paxton’s sins are more exotic than those of your ordinary Texan.
    — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Just before the Devil drawing is a churchman’s confession of a lengthy list of sins.
    — Laura Payne, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of sins
Noun
  • But to do it without five of his six best weapons speaks not only to his excellence but the glaring shortcomings in the Dolphins’ defense.
    — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Its shortcomings, including a lack of keyboard backlighting and an 8GB memory limit, are tolerable given the price.
    — Charles Jefferies, PC Magazine, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of shortcomings

Browse Nearby Words

failing (at)
failings
fails
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Cite this Entry

“Failings.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/failings. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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