Fail
Fail verb - To stop functioning.
Plays
Both words in one sentence
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The Chapter Black saga also mostly plays it straight, as the heroes fail to prevent Kuwabara from being kidnapped, fail to stop the opening of the portal, and destroy the barrier themselves.
Source: You Can't Thwart Stage One - If you fail an event in the original Pilotwings, a sad piano version of the "Event Clear" music plays.
Source: Dark Reprise -
Spielberg also plays with the trope by having Neary fail to notice the TV for several minutes while it's showing footage of Devil's Tower.
Source: Coincidental Broadcast
Cite this Source
Plays and Fail. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 14, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/fail/plays
Fail & Plays. N.p., 2016. Web. 14 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/fail/plays>.
Plays or Fail. 2016. Accessed August 14, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/fail/plays.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "fail" and "plays" have occurred on timeline