pass-fail

American

[pas-feyl, pahs-] / ˈpæsˈfeɪl, ˈpɑs- /

noun

Education.

a system of grading in some educational institutions in which a student simply passes or fails instead of receiving a letter or numerical grade.

Etymology

Origin of pass-fail

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Lakers are a pass-fail upper-level course; they either win a championship or they fail.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026

It’s a pass-fail test, and it doesn’t impact the vehicle’s safety rating.

From Slate • Jul. 23, 2023

It ended much of the drama of the tests by scrapping the "pass-fail" model and introducing a more nuanced, bank-specific capital regime.

From Reuters • Jun. 26, 2023

There are no letter grades; students get detailed “narrative evaluations” as part of a pass-fail system.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 29, 2023

Or concocting a pass-fail test—he was famous for that type—where he threaded together questions that could throw a guy for a loss, with what seemed like a million possible answers.

From "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023