as in reliable
not likely to fail
flowers have been traditionally regarded as the fail-safe gift for Valentine's Day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in precaution
a measure taken to preclude loss or injury
there are so many fail-safes built into the system that a highly unlikely series of mistakes would have to be made before failure could occur
Synonyms & Similar Words
Examples 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 fail-safe
Wendy Naugle, People.com, 2 Oct. 2024
Read the specifics of insurance policies Travel insurance isn’t always a fail-safe in the event consumers can’t get reimbursed from the travel provider for a flight, hotel or other travel expenses, experts said.
—Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 1 Oct. 2024
Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2023
Shop Now 10 Navy Blue In areas with strict historic guidelines, navy blue is often a fail-safe.
—Elle Decor Editors, ELLE Decor, 17 Mar. 2023
See all Example Sentences for fail-safe 
Adjective
People now know that early detection is not fail-safe.
—Wendy Naugle, People.com, 2 Oct. 2024
Read the specifics of insurance policies Travel insurance isn’t always a fail-safe in the event consumers can’t get reimbursed from the travel provider for a flight, hotel or other travel expenses, experts said.
—Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 1 Oct. 2024
Noun
The idea was to make bank oversight both stricter and more fail-safe.
—Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2023
Shop Now 10 Navy Blue In areas with strict historic guidelines, navy blue is often a fail-safe.
—Elle Decor Editors, ELLE Decor, 17 Mar. 2023
See all Example Sentences for fail-safe
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fail-safe
Adjective
-
As a meta-analysis, the researchers noted that their report provides more reliable answers than a smaller, singular study.—
Lauryn Higgins,
Health,
23 Jan. 2025
-
An uptick in office lease signings has led some to hope the office rental market has hit bottom, but others, like landlord and developer Garrett Lee, believe there’s a more reliable path forward than trying to convince tenants to return: converting offices into apartments.—
Roger Vincent,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Just as a precaution, Trend Micro schedules a weekly quick scan.—
PCMAG,
PCMAG,
24 Jan. 2025
-
The rain forecast comes on the tail end of another red-flag warning period that prompted nearly 100,000 power customers to have their electricity shut off as a precaution Thursday.—
Karina Tsui,
CNN,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Limiting alcohol intake is the only surefire way to prevent a hangover.—
Alicen Nelson MD,
Verywell Health,
24 Jan. 2025
-
Not a surefire strategy Musk poured money into Trump’s re-election bid and parked himself in the key swing state of Pennsylvania, which Trump won.—
Jess Bidgood,
New York Times,
18 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Indeed, failure to do so proved disastrous for some early human trials of preventives.—
David J. Waters,
Scientific American,
1 Sep. 2015
-
Padlocks, sickles and other objects made of iron, a metal said to possess anti-demonic powers, were stashed in the grave as preventives.—
Franz Lidz,
New York Times,
5 Sep. 2023
Adjective
-
Daniels has been infallible in the postseason, beating every scheme and exposing every defensive trick.—
J.J. Bailey,
The Athletic,
21 Jan. 2025
-
Checkers are not infallible, and their successes are mostly due to hard work and creativity.—
Fergus McIntosh,
The New Yorker,
11 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near fail-safe
Cite this Entry
“Fail-safe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fail-safe. Accessed 29 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share