Which to use
“fails” is a verb and “fault” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,600
- “fails” frequency rank
- #2,296
- “fault” frequency rank
- 6896
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fails | fault |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | third-person singular simple present indicative of fail | Culpability; the responsibility for a blameworthy event. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fails and fault apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
fails and fault form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6896, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fails is recorded at frequency rank #4,600, classified as averb, pronounced /feɪlz/. fault is at rank #2,296, tagged as anoun, pronounced /fɔːlt/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 6896, this pair ranks #509,521 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fails" and "fault" be used interchangeably?
Remembering fails vs fault
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “fails”; for a noun, it's “fault”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fails” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable