ˈdiːfɛkt dɪˈmɛrɪt ˈɛɹə(ɹ) ˈɛɹɚ fɔːlt fɔlt fɔːlt fɔlt ˈflɔː ˈflɔ ˈflɔː ˈfɹæk.tʃə mɪˈsteɪk ʃɪft a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention he made a bad mistake she was quick to point out my errors I could understand his English in spite of his grammatical faults (sports) a serve that is illegal (e.g., that lands outside the prescribed area) he served too many double faults put or pin the blame on responsibility for a bad situation or event it was John's fault the quality of being inadequate or falling short of perfection they discussed the merits and demerits of her novel he knew his own faults much better than she did (electronics) equipment failure attributable to some defect in a circuit (loose connection or insulation failure or short circuit etc.) it took much longer to find the fault than to fix it (geology) a crack in the earth's crust resulting from the displacement of one side with respect to the other they built it right over a geological fault he studied the faulting of the earth's crust an imperfection in an object or machine a flaw caused the crystal to shatter if there are any defects, you should send it back to the manufacturer