1
as in weaknesses
a defect in character
the common fault of being quick to judge others
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in mistakes
an unintentional departure from truth or accuracy
there's a fault somewhere in the program
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in defects
something that spoils the appearance or completeness of a thing
the minor faults in the leather are entirely natural and are what gives it a look different from vinyl
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in blames
the state of being held as the cause of something that needs to be set right
the investigator determined that the auto accident was entirely the other driver's fault
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in criticizes
to express one's unfavorable opinion of the worth or quality of
you should look at your own work before faulting what others have done
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 faults
Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 31 May 2026
Ruptures occur at various depths, faults hold varying amounts of potential energy, and tectonic plates break at different speeds — each affecting how the quake is felt even from a short distance away, Pitarka said.
—Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 30 May 2026
Show me a country that doesn’t have faults.
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2026
School fires are common in Kenyan boarding schools, with some caused by arson and others by electrical faults.
—CBS News, 28 May 2026
Microsoft has also improved Windows search to better recognize files and folders from just two characters, and USB4 and USB3 have been made more stable and resilient against errors caused by unexpected hardware faults.
—Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 28 May 2026
Some 150 to 200 cable faults happen every year, with 70 to 80 percent of them arising from accidents involving fishing equipment and ships’ anchors, according to the International Cable Protection Committee.
—Ramin Skibba, Scientific American, 27 May 2026
School fires are common in Kenyan boarding schools, with some caused by arson and others by electrical faults.
—ABC News, 27 May 2026
Another two months of testing and iterating should minimise the risk of day-zero hardware faults that would disrupt the launch of all three models.
—Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 23 May 2026
Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2026
On the next page, David Greising faults Mayor Brandon Johnson for failing to adequately entice the Bears to stay in Chicago.
—Colleen Kujawa, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2026
The center’s report also faults Missouri and Kansas, along with many other states, for not taxing online gambling companies enough.
—Suzanne King, Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
In the Gospels, Jesus faults the Pharisees for insisting on a legalistic Sabbath.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 22 Dec. 2025
The group’s memo faults the NDAA on two fronts.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 8 Dec. 2025
The Cartwell family's complaint also faults a DPW supervisor for allegedly allowing the truck driver to leave the scene in a Lyft.
—Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025
The suit also faults the Federal Aviation Administration for allowing the congested airspace to exist and the actions of controllers.
—Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2025
Cindy also faults her decision to bring Stephenie with her on the reward.
—EW.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Noun
However, the things that can lead to faults are, in a twisted way, something McKenna loves about the character.
—Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 31 May 2026
Ruptures occur at various depths, faults hold varying amounts of potential energy, and tectonic plates break at different speeds — each affecting how the quake is felt even from a short distance away, Pitarka said.
—Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 30 May 2026
Show me a country that doesn’t have faults.
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2026
School fires are common in Kenyan boarding schools, with some caused by arson and others by electrical faults.
—CBS News, 28 May 2026
Microsoft has also improved Windows search to better recognize files and folders from just two characters, and USB4 and USB3 have been made more stable and resilient against errors caused by unexpected hardware faults.
—Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 28 May 2026
Some 150 to 200 cable faults happen every year, with 70 to 80 percent of them arising from accidents involving fishing equipment and ships’ anchors, according to the International Cable Protection Committee.
—Ramin Skibba, Scientific American, 27 May 2026
School fires are common in Kenyan boarding schools, with some caused by arson and others by electrical faults.
—ABC News, 27 May 2026
Another two months of testing and iterating should minimise the risk of day-zero hardware faults that would disrupt the launch of all three models.
—Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 23 May 2026
Verb
The legal filing also faults the company’s handling of smoke damage claims, including denials of payments for hygienic testing.
—Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2026
On the next page, David Greising faults Mayor Brandon Johnson for failing to adequately entice the Bears to stay in Chicago.
—Colleen Kujawa, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2026
The center’s report also faults Missouri and Kansas, along with many other states, for not taxing online gambling companies enough.
—Suzanne King, Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
In the Gospels, Jesus faults the Pharisees for insisting on a legalistic Sabbath.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 22 Dec. 2025
The group’s memo faults the NDAA on two fronts.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 8 Dec. 2025
The Cartwell family's complaint also faults a DPW supervisor for allegedly allowing the truck driver to leave the scene in a Lyft.
—Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025
The suit also faults the Federal Aviation Administration for allowing the congested airspace to exist and the actions of controllers.
—Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2025
Cindy also faults her decision to bring Stephenie with her on the reward.
—EW.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for faults
Noun
-
Of course, plenty can happen between now and then, but those have been the most glaring weaknesses for a team that is second to the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
-
Boosting this skill could look like understanding the strengths and weaknesses of current AI models, writing specs, building systems to check for errors, and knowing what problems to tackle in the first place.—
Benjamin Todd,
CNBC,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
Midfielder Onni Valakari framed the mistakes less as individual breakdowns than collective failures.—
Eddie Brown,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 May 2026
-
But experts for years have said companies have not learned from past mistakes.—
Iris Kwok,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
Look for those that cover manufacturing defects for at least one year after the original purchase date, and think about adding extra coverage for accidental damages imparted on your own behalf.—
Stacia Datskovska,
Footwear News,
27 May 2026
-
In 2021, the condo board filed a lawsuit citing design and construction defects.—
Wendy Bowman,
Robb Report,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
One owner who started an Amazon delivery business in 2019 blames skyrocketing premiums for slashing his annual profit from $400,000 to $150,000.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The audit also criticizes the city for not trying to boost compliance by issuing fines.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
-
OpenAI memo criticizes Anthropic watch now Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.—
Ashley Capoot,
CNBC,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Polymarket founder Shayne Coplan has acknowledged the shortcomings with the UMA process at a number of points in the past.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
26 May 2026
-
The shortcomings of that approach were apparent under the Biden administration, which took pride in more or less banishing economists from economic policy-making positions.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
26 May 2026
Noun
-
The Monarchs banged out 10 hits, stole three bases and took advantage of nine walks, six errors, four hit batters and three wild pitches.—
Don Norcross,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
31 May 2026
-
Pueblo County capitalized on the second of those errors with an insurance run in the fourth.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
Proud scars remain, like the Civil War-era bullet holes in the brick walls of the half-bath, which were once the exterior walls of the building.—
Mike Klingaman,
Baltimore Sun,
26 May 2026
-
Brown wasn’t here for those scars.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
26 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Faults.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/faults. Accessed 1 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
