as in reliable
not likely to fail
flowers have been traditionally regarded as the fail-safe gift for Valentine's Day
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
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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
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The analog sticks are sturdy and reliable, the d-pad is a little weirdly placed but otherwise great, and everything else about it feels sufficiently premium.Andy Biggs, Newsweek, 24 Dec. 2024
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Real-time Data Requirements: Applications like autonomous driving or predictive analytics require constant and reliable data streams, which can be challenging to maintain.Max (Chong) Li, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
Noun
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After the baby was found, he was taken to a local children's hospital as a precaution, while detectives canvassed the area, looked into camera footage, and tried to figure out who left the baby there.Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY, 26 Dec. 2024
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Based on your medical history, your healthcare provider can take precautions to reduce your risk of these problems.Anna Giorgi, Verywell Health, 25 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Ring out the old year and bring in the new with four outstanding mysteries and discover each author’s lists of surefire, gift-worthy books.Paula L. Woods, Los Angeles Times, 22 Dec. 2024
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Mostly that means the score, a surefire collection of the best classic stage musicals have to offer.Greg Evans, Deadline, 19 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Indeed, failure to do so proved disastrous for some early human trials of preventives.David J. Waters, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2015
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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
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The infallible head of the Holy See, in all his sovereignty, saying the quiet part out loud?Fran Tirado, Them, 20 Dec. 2024
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These agencies are not infallible, but someone has to make the call about what will be allowed in our food, in our air, in our water, as pharmaceutical therapeutics and so on.New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 10 Dec. 2024
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 30 Dec. 2024.
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