FAILURE definition: 1. the fact of someone or something not succeeding: 2. the fact of not doing something that you…. Learn more.
If you say that someone is a failure, you mean that they have not succeeded in a particular activity, or that they are unsuccessful at everything they do. Elgar received many honors and much acclaim and yet he often considered himself a failure. I just felt I had been a failure in my personal life.
I'm sorry to hear that your attempt to turn hay into gold has been a failure. Failure can also mean when something suddenly stops working or when you don't do something that you're expected to.