What does défaut in French mean?

What is the meaning of the word défaut in French? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use défaut in French.

The word défaut in French means fault, flaw, fault, mistake, error, defect, impairment, lack, if you don't hear otherwise, in the absence of, if is not able to do , if cannot do, for want of anything better, speech impediment, manufacturing defect, lack of delivery, delivery failure, default, not wearing a seatbelt, failure to present, failure to show up, failure to turn up, insufficient funds, non-payment of fares, be caught, be caught off guard, lack, make a choice by default, judgment by default, default judgment, curiosity killed the cat, put out of action, default option, by default, default, by default, caught out, default setting, default calibration, zero defect, flawless, blemish-free. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word défaut

fault, flaw

nom masculin (travers moral)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Mentir est un vilain défaut. Mon plus grand défaut est ma susceptibilité.
Telling lies is an unpleasant vice.

fault

nom masculin (problème)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
J'ai trouvé plusieurs défauts à cette machine.
I have found several faults with this machine.

mistake, error

nom masculin (manquement aux règles)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Cet ouvrage est plein de défauts.
This work is full of mistakes (or: errors).

defect, impairment

nom masculin (imperfection physique)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Il a un défaut de vue à l'œil gauche.
He has a vision defect (or: impairment) in his left eye.

lack

nom masculin (manque)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Cet enfant a un défaut d'attention.
This child shows a lack of attention.

if you don't hear otherwise

locution adverbiale (en l'absence de précisions)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
La réunion aura lieu lundi à défaut.
The meeting will go ahead on Monday if you don't hear otherwise.

in the absence of

(en cas d'absence de [qch])

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
À défaut de cerises, j'ai pris des abricots pour mon clafoutis.
As there weren't any cherries, I got apricots for my clafoutis.

if is not able to do , if cannot do

(dans l'impossibilité de faire [qch])

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
Nous nous appellerons à défaut de pouvoir nous voir.
We'll call each other if we can't see each another.

for want of anything better

locution adverbiale (sans meilleur choix)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")

speech impediment

nom masculin (difficulté d'expression, d'articulation)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Le cheveu sur la langue est un défaut d'élocution.

manufacturing defect

nom masculin (vice dû à la fabrication)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

lack of delivery, delivery failure

nom masculin (manquement à la remise de produits)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Nous avons annulé notre commande pour défaut de livraison.

default

nom masculin (faillite)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Notre entreprise se retrouve en défaut de paiement.

not wearing a seatbelt

nom masculin (non usage de la ceinture)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Le défaut de port de ceinture de sécurité est puni par la loi.

failure to present

nom masculin (non production)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Le défaut de présentation des papiers d'un véhicule entraîne une amende.

failure to show up, failure to turn up

nom masculin (non présence)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Son défaut de présentation lui valut la perte des jetons de présence.

insufficient funds

nom masculin (compte insuffisamment approvisionné)

(plural noun: Noun always used in plural form--for example, "jeans," "scissors.")

non-payment of fares

nom masculin (absence de carte de bus, métro)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Les contrôleurs sont chargés de réprimer les défauts de titre de transport.

be caught

locution verbale (être surpris à transgresser)

Cet automobiliste a été pris en défaut à plus de 130 km/h sur l'autoroute.

be caught off guard

locution verbale (échouer)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Elle fut prise en défaut sur cette question.

lack

(manquer à [qqn]) (subject/object inversion)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Ce chanteur n'arrête pas de s'envoyer des fleurs. On peut dire que l'humilité lui fait défaut.
That singer is forever sending himself flowers; it's fair to say he lacks humility.

make a choice by default

locution verbale (péjoratif (choisir la moins mauvaise option)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Pierre a fait un choix par défaut car aucune option ne lui plaisait.

judgment by default, default judgment

nom masculin (jugement en l'absence d'une partie) (law)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
S'il ne comparaît avant 10 jours, un jugement par défaut sera rendu contre lui.

curiosity killed the cat

(il ne faut pas fouiner) (proverb)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")
Quand on veut écarter un importun, on lui dit que la curiosité est un vilain défaut.

put out of action

locution verbale (faire faire une faute) (equipment)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")

default option

nom féminin (choix proposé a priori)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Les caractéristiques de démarrage sont définies comme option par défaut.

by default

locution adverbiale (sauf mention contraire)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Si vous ne cochez rien, par défaut on considère que vous êtes d'accord pour l'utilisation de votre image.

default

locution adverbiale (sans autre précision) (settings)

Par défaut, le navigateur ouvre une page blanche.
The browser opens a blank page as its default.

by default

locution adverbiale (faute de mieux)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
J'ai choisi cette voiture par défaut.

caught out

locution adjectivale (qui oublie de faire [qch])

default setting, default calibration

nom masculin (paramètre proposé à priori)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
La caméra intégrée fonctionne avec le réglage par défaut.

zero defect, flawless, blemish-free

locution adjectivale (parfait)

Let's learn French

So now that you know more about the meaning of défaut in French, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in French.

Related words of défaut

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