fault
/fɔlt/noun, verb
fault is spelled F-A-U-L-T: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 44 times per million words in written English, the 2,290th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, fault means “Culpability; the responsibility for a blameworthy event” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of fault is faults.
How many letters and syllables are in fault?
| Letters | 5: F-A-U-L-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 44 times per million words; the 2,290th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is fault?
Fault appears 44 times per million words in written English, the 2,290th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce fault?
- UK /fɔːlt/
- UK /fɒlt/
- US /fɔlt/
Fault has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-uk-fault.ogg, En-us-fault.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with fault?
5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as fault from its last stressed vowel (/ɔlt/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: faltu.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of fault
- faults plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- faulting participle, present
- faulted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does fault mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Culpability; the responsibility for a blameworthy event.
No, don't blame yourself. It's my fault that we lost the game.
- 2
A failing of character; less severe than a vice.
Despite all her faults, she’s a good person at heart.
- 3
A characteristic, positive or negative or both, which increases one's risk of danger or difficulty.
You're still young, that's your fault.
- 4
A strongly undesirable variation of food or drink caused by impurity or contamination.
Cork taint is one of the most recognizable wine faults.
- 5
obsoleteA point of weakness in something's physical structure.
- 6
A minor offense.
- 7
An illegal serve.
- 8
A penalty point assessed in horseback events such as show jumping.
If the horse refuses an obstacle, the rider will receive four faults.
verb
- 1
To criticize, blame or find fault with something or someone.
- 2
To fracture.
- 3
To commit a mistake or error.
- 4
To undergo a page fault.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Fault in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | faute , défaut , faille |
| German | Schuld , Fehler , Charakterschwäche , Verfehlung , fehlen, sündigen |
| Spanish | culpa , defecto, falla , falta |
| Portuguese | defeito, falha , culpa |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does fault come from?
From Middle English faute, faulte, from Anglo-Norman faute, Old French faute, from Vulgar Latin *fallita (“shortcoming”), feminine of *fallitus, in place of Latin falsus, perfect passive participle of fallō (“deceive”). Displaced native Middle English schuld, schuild (“fault”) (from Old English scyld (“fault”)), Middle English lac (“fault, lack”) (from Middle Dutch lak (“lack, fault”)), Middle English last (“fault, vice”) (from Old Norse lǫstr (“fault, vice, crime”)). Compare French faute (“fault, foul”), Portuguese falta (“lack, shortage”) and Spanish falta (“lack, absence”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).