malfunction

WOTD - 7 March 2008    

English

Etymology

From mal- (“bad, incorrect”) + function

Pronunciation

• (RP, US) IPA: /ˌmælˈfʌŋk.ʃən/, SAMPA: /%m{l"fVNk.S@n/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌŋkʃən

Noun

malfunction (plural malfunctions)

1. Faulty functioning.
2. Failure to function.

Translations

Faulty functioning

Dutch: slechte werking f. Finnish: toimintahäiriö, virhetoiminta German: Fehlfunktion f., Funktionsstörung f.

Greek: δυσλειτουργία (el) (ðislitourgía) f. Italian: malfunzionamento (it) Polish: wadliwe działanie n.

Failure to function

Dutch: stuk zijn n., storing (nl) f. Finnish: toimintahäiriö French: défaut de fonctionnement m. German: Fehlfunktion f., Funktionsstörung f.

Greek: δυσλειτουργία (el) (ðislitourgía) f. Italian: malfunzionamento (it) Polish: awaria (pl) f.

Verb

malfunction (third-person singular simple present malfunctions, present participle malfunctioning, simple past and past participle malfunctioned)

1. To function improperly

   She told him the machine was poorly built, but they both knew that she was the one who had malfunctioned.

2. To fail to function

Translations

to function improperly

Finnish: toimia huonosti German: nicht funktionieren

Polish: wadliwie działać !Xóõ: ǁʻàa

to fail to function

German: nicht funktionieren Polish: nie działać

!Xóõ: ǁʻàa