preventing failure

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "preventing failure" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used in contexts where you are discussing strategies, measures, or actions taken to avoid failure in a particular situation or project. Example: "The team implemented several strategies aimed at preventing failure during the product launch."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

12 human-written examples

These examples shall exemplify learning from damages and consequently preventing failure of components and structures in the future.

International Journal of Fatigue

This paper discusses how damage tolerance and nondestructive inspection work together to ensure airworthiness by preventing failure from undetected manufacturing and/or service-induced damage.

Procedia Engineering

They can, however, be used qualitatively to determine what characteristics of various organisms' structures might be most important for preventing failure in different situations.

Nature's Machines An Introduction to Organismal Biomechanics

A SIL assignment method for the design and rectification of SIS used for preventing failure action and spurious activation is presented in this paper.

Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries

Furthermore, precautions necessary for preventing failure due to corrosion of buried tower components and deterioration of anchor blocks and foundations are also discussed.

Construction and Building Materials

Although the grouting repair did not significantly alter the observed damage pattern after re-testing, it generally succeeded in preventing failure propagation through the injected crack paths.

Construction and Building Materials

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

47 human-written examples

Instead, what they proved to be really great at was rescuing people when they had a complication, preventing failures from becoming a catastrophe.

The New Yorker

Proactive monitoring and recovery actions: The system is able to find defects in the pipelines, preventing failures and allowing rapid repairing.

EURASIP Journal on Wireless Communications and Networking

Tendon research has focused on preventing failures of rotator cuff repair and augmenting the biological healing of the rotator cuff.

Arthritis Research and Therapy

However, challenges, such as guaranteeing accurate glucose feedback and preventing failures in insulin infusion, still persist today.

Biomacromolecules

The goal should be to limit the contagion of failure rather than to prevent failure itself.

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When discussing strategies, measures, or actions taken to avoid negative results in a situation or project, use "preventing failure". For example, "The company is focused on preventing failure by investing in employee training."

Common error

While "preventing failure" is grammatically sound, it can sound overly formal in casual conversations. In informal settings, consider using more relaxed alternatives like "avoiding problems" or "keeping things from going wrong".

Linguistic Context

The phrase "preventing failure" functions as a gerund phrase, often acting as a noun. It describes the act of avoiding undesirable outcomes and is often used in contexts where planning, risk assessment, and proactive measures are discussed, as showcased in Ludwig's examples.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

50%

News & Media

25%

Academia

25%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Wiki

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "preventing failure" is a grammatically sound and moderately frequent phrase used to emphasize proactive strategies for avoiding negative outcomes. As confirmed by Ludwig, it is most common in scientific, academic, and news contexts. While appropriate in most settings, more informal language might be preferable in casual conversation. Consider alternatives like "avoiding failure" or "ensuring success" depending on the desired emphasis. Remember to maintain a formal register when using this phrase, as it is often associated with careful planning and detailed risk assessment.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

failure prevention

Reverses the order of the words while maintaining the same core meaning.

averting failure

Replaces "preventing" with "averting", which carries a similar connotation of stopping something negative from happening.

avoiding failure

Uses the synonym "avoiding" to replace "preventing".

forestalling failure

Substitutes "preventing" with "forestalling", emphasizing proactive action to stop failure.

guarding against failure

Emphasizes protection against the possibility of failure.

mitigating failure

Focuses on reducing the severity or impact of failure, rather than outright prevention.

minimizing failure

Similar to mitigating, this emphasizes reducing the occurrence or impact of failure.

ensuring success

Shifts the focus from avoiding failure to achieving a positive outcome.

securing success

Similar to ensuring success, highlighting the act of guaranteeing a favorable result.

assuring success

Emphasizes guaranteeing a positive outcome, shifting the focus from preventing negativity.

FAQs

How can I use "preventing failure" in a sentence?

You can use "preventing failure" to describe actions taken to avoid negative outcomes, such as, "The key to this project is preventing failure by carefully planning each step".

What are some alternatives to "preventing failure"?

You can use alternatives like "avoiding failure", "averting failure", or "ensuring success" depending on the context.

Is it always necessary to focus on "preventing failure", or can we focus on success?

While "preventing failure" is important, focusing on strategies for "achieving success" can be equally, if not more, effective. A balanced approach is often best.

What's the difference between "preventing failure" and "mitigating failure"?

"Preventing failure" focuses on stopping failure from happening altogether. "Mitigating failure", on the other hand, involves reducing the negative impacts if failure does occur. Therefore mitigating failure means that you're implementing actions "limiting the damage".