Fail Doing vs. Fail To Do
Oxford documents “fail to do” for unsuccessful or omitted actions and separately documents “fail in” patterns. Treat bare “fail doing” as different from the standard to-infinitive complement rather than as an interchangeable gerund alternative.
Use “fail to do” when the meaning is not succeeding in, or not performing, the following action. An -ing form belongs to a different construction such as “fail in …,” not a like-for-like bare complement.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Meaning / situation | Form / construction | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| not succeed in or not perform the following action | fail + to + verb | Use the to-infinitive. |
| an -ing form is licensed by a preposition or noun construction | fail in + -ing / other structure | Treat that as a different construction. |
| bare -ing proposed as direct complement | fail doing | Do not use it as a like-for-like substitute for “fail to do.” |
Quick tests
Meaning / construction test
Does “fail” directly introduce the action that was not achieved or performed?
If yes: Use “fail to do.”
If no: If an -ing form appears, check whether a preposition or another construction licenses it.
Caveat: The page distinguishes direct complements; it does not ban every -ing form in sentences containing “fail.”
Examples
The system failed to start.
The action that did not happen follows “fail” as a to-infinitive.
She failed to submit the form on time.
The to-infinitive names the action not performed.
The team failed in meeting its original target.
The -ing form is licensed by the separate “fail in …” construction.
Further guidance
Decision
When “fail” directly introduces the action that was not achieved or performed, use the to-infinitive.
Preposition Boundary
An -ing form can be licensed by a surrounding preposition or noun construction, but that does not make bare fail + -ing the standard parallel pattern.
To Infinitive
Use fail + to-infinitive for not succeeding in or not doing a following action.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- fail — Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries · Fail with to-infinitive for unsuccessful or omitted actions; fail in + noun patterns
- Verb patterns: verb + infinitive or verb + -ing? (opens in a new tab)Cambridge Dictionary · Verb-complement patterns, including verbs taking -ing, to-infinitive, or both with meaning differences