Meanings
plural market failures
- countableuncountableeconomicsA situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient.
From a policy perspective, market failure should be a matter of concern when market performance significantly deviates from the appropriate efficiency benchmark.
2007, Clifford Winston, Government Failure versus Market Failure: Microeconomics Policy Research and Government Performance, Brookings Institution Press, →ISBN, page 31 more example
"Climate change is a result of the greatest market failure the world has seen. The evidence on the seriousness of the risks from inaction or delayed action is now overwhelming. We risk damages on a scale larger than the two world wars of the last century. The problem is global and the response must be a collaboration on a global scale."
2007 November 29, Alison Benjamin, “Stern: Climate change a 'market failure'”, in The Guardian
Translations
Catalan fallada de mercat
- fallada de mercata situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Chinese Mandarin 市場失靈 /市场失灵
- 市場失靈 /市场失灵a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Czech tržní selhání
- tržní selhánía situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Dutch marktfalen
- marktfalena situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Estonian turutõrge
- turutõrgea situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Finnish markkinahäiriö, markkinoiden toimimattomuus
- markkinahäiriöa situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
- markkinoiden toimimattomuusa situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
French défaillance du marché, défaillance de marché
- défaillance du marchéa situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
- défaillance de marchéa situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
German Marktversagen
- Marktversagena situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Hungarian piaci kudarc
- piaci kudarca situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Italian fallimento del mercato
- fallimento del mercatoa situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Polish zawodność rynku
- zawodność rynkua situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Portuguese falha de mercado
- falha de mercadoa situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Russian прова́л ры́нка, сбой ры́нка
- прова́л ры́нка (provál rýnka)a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
- сбой ры́нка (sboj rýnka)a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
- фиа́ско ры́нка (fiásko rýnka)a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Ukrainian фіаско ринку, розлад ринку
- фіаско ринку (fiasko rynku)a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
- розлад ринку (rozlad rynku)a situation in which the allocation of goods and services by a free market is not efficient
Cite this entry
market failure. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/market%20failure
“market failure.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/market%20failure. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “market failure,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/market%20failure.
Source: market failure on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.