Term: flaw
Flaw (noun) /flɔː/:
- A fault, mistake, or weakness, especially one that happens while something is being planned or made. LV: trūkums, kļūme.
- A small physical crack or mark that makes an object less perfect. LV: defekts, plaisa.
Example sentences:
- A serious flaw in the security software allowed hackers to access the database.
- The diamond was cheaper than the others because of a tiny internal flaw.
- His argument was convincing, but there was one major flaw in his logic.
Common phrases:
- Fatal flaw: A specific weakness that causes something to fail completely.”The bridge collapsed because of a fatal flaw in the engineering design.”
- Character flaw: A negative quality or weakness in someone’s personality.”His tendency to lie was a major character flaw that ruined his career.”
- Design flaw: A mistake made during the planning stage of a product.”The car model was recalled due to a dangerous design flaw in the brakes.”
- Inherent flaw: A weakness that is a natural part of a system or object.”The system has an inherent flaw that makes it slow during peak hours.”
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
flaw (noun)1.
a sudden brief burst of wind , also a spell of stormy weather
2.
obsolete an outburst especially of passion
1.
a) a defect in physical structure or form - a diamond with a flaw
b) an imperfection or weakness and especially one that detracts from the whole or hinders effectiveness - vanity was the flaw in his character a flaw in the book's plot
2.
obsolete - fragment
transitive verb
intransitive verb
to make in - flaws mar to become defective
Merriam-Webster Online Thesaurus
flaw (noun)something that spoils the appearance or completeness of a thing
SYNONYMS:
blight, blotch, defect, deformity, disfigurement, excrescence, excrescency, fault, flaw, imperfection, mar, mark, pockmark, scarRELATED WORDS:
abnormality, distortion, irregularity, malformation, misshape; bug, glitch, kink; blot, blur, spot, stain, taint; damage, defacement, impairment, injury; failing, weaknessNEAR ANTONYMS:
adornment, decoration, embellishment, enhancement, ornamentto reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
SYNONYMS:
blemish, bloody, break, compromise, crab, cripple, cross (up), deface, disfigure, endamage, flaw, harm, hurt, impair, injure, mar, spoil, vitiateRELATED WORDS:
deteriorate, enervate, enfeeble, undermine, weaken; erode, scour, wash out, wear (away); blight, tarnish; dent, ding, dint; botch, gum (up), queer; lacerate, wound; disable, hamstring, lame, maim, mangle, mutilate, torment, torture; annihilate, bang up, bash, batter, clobber, crush, dash, decimate, demolish, desolate, destroy, devastate, do in, pulverize, raze, ruin, scourge, shatter, smash, tear down, total, waste, wipe out, wreckNEAR ANTONYMS:
cure, heal, help, rectify, rehabilitate, remedy; edit, remodel, revise; ameliorate, better, enhance, enrich, improve, meliorate, perfect, refine