fail up

A form of fail upwards — To advance in one's career despite failure or incompetence.

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Meanings

verbfail up (third-person singular simple present fails up, present participle failing up, simple past and past participle failed up)

present singular third person fails up · participle present failing up · participle past failed up · past failed up

  1. alternativeAlternative form of fail upwards.
Cite this entry
APA

fail up. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fail%20up

MLA

“fail up.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fail%20up. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fail up,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fail%20up.

Source: fail up on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.