faint

[ feynt ]

/ feɪnt /

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See synonyms for: faint / fainted / fainter / fainting on Thesaurus.com

adjective, faint·er, faint·est.

lacking brightness, vividness, clearness, loudness, strength, etc.: a faint light; a faint color; a faint sound.

feeble or slight: faint resistance; faint praise; a faint resemblance.

feeling weak, dizzy, or exhausted; about to lose consciousness: faint with hunger.

lacking courage; cowardly; timorous: Faint heart never won fair maid.

Law. unfounded: a faint action.

verb (used without object)

to lose consciousness temporarily.

to lose brightness.

Archaic. to grow weak; lose spirit or courage.

noun

a temporary loss of consciousness resulting from a decreased flow of blood to the brain; a swoon: to fall into a faint.

OTHER WORDS FOR faint

1 indistinct, ill-defined, dim, faded, dull,

2 faltering, irresolute, weak.

3 languid.

4 pusillanimous, fearful, timid, dastardly.

6 pass out, black out.

See synonyms for faint on Thesaurus.com

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of faint

1250–1300; Middle English <Anglo-French, Old French, past participle of faindre, variant of feindre to feign

OTHER WORDS FROM faint

fainter, nounfaint·ing·ly, adverbfaintish, adjectivefaint·ish·ness, noun

faintly, adverbfaintness, nouno·ver·faint, adjectiveo·ver·faint·ly, adverbo·ver·faint·ness, nounun·faint·ing, adjectiveun·faint·ly, adverb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH faint

fain, faint , feign, feint

Words nearby faint

fain, fainaigue, fainéant, fainites, fáinne, faint, faintheart, fainthearted, faints, fainty, fair

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use faint in a sentence

You can still see them going by, but barely—they’re very faint.
Satellite mega-constellations risk ruining astronomy forever|Neel Patel|September 2, 2020|MIT Technology Review
On the sides, a lean premixed flame appears as a faint wisp.
Four types of flames join forces to make this eerie ‘blue whirl’|Emily Conover|August 12, 2020|Science News
Researchers have started to make rough Faraday rotation measurements using LOFAR, but the telescope has trouble picking out the extremely faint signal.
The Hidden Magnetic Universe Begins to Come Into View|Natalie Wolchover|July 2, 2020|Quanta Magazine
By training computers to recognize such faint rumbles, the scientists were able not only to identify the probable culprit behind the quakes, but also to track how such mysterious swarms can spread through complex fault networks in space and time.
Machine learning helped demystify a California earthquake swarm|Carolyn Gramling|June 18, 2020|Science News

When that faint light hits the other side, it’s already been split apart into its colors.
Explainer: Rainbows, fogbows and their eerie cousins|Matthew Cappucci|May 1, 2020|Science News For Students
Her voice was raspy and after answering questions she paused, as if about to faint.
Jeopardy! Champion Julia Collins’s Brain Feels Like Mush|Sujay Kumar|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I saw a faint, sweet glimmer of the ferocious protector he once was.
No One Ever Loses to Cancer|Dushka Zapata|October 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But this time I can plainly hear, through the rush of words, the faint rattle of hysteria that bespeaks a screw loose somewhere.
The Stacks: Grateful Dead I Have Known|Ed McClanahan|August 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After about an hour, he hears a faint tapping sound from inside the freezer and opens the door.
Robin Williams, Hollywood’s Grand Jester, Is Dead at 63|Marlow Stern|August 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A fine book all around, but not a book for the faint of heart.
The Gestapo Still Sets the Bar for Evil|James A. Warren|July 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The faint candle-light glimmered on a ponderous gilded cornice, which had also sustained violence.
Checkmate|Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
It was difficult to describe—a little sterner, a little wilder, a faint emphasis of the barbaric peering through it.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
He was looking at me with eyebrows arched, curiously, and there was a faint suggestion of hostility in the set of his mouth.
The Soldier of the Valley|Nelson Lloyd
The cytoplasm of lymphocytes is generally robin's-egg blue; that of the large mononuclears may have a faint bluish tinge.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
Wright's stain gives such cells a faint bluish tinge when the condition is mild, and a rather deep blue when severe.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd

British Dictionary definitions for faint

faint

/ (feɪnt) /

adjective

lacking clarity, brightness, volume, etca faint noise

lacking conviction or force; weakfaint praise

feeling dizzy or weak as if about to lose consciousness

without boldness or courage; timid (esp in the combination faint-hearted)

not the faintest, not the faintest idea or not the faintest notion no idea whatsoeverI haven't the faintest

verb (intr)

to lose consciousness, esp momentarily, as through weakness

archaic, or poetic to fail or become weak, esp in hope or courage

noun

a sudden spontaneous loss of consciousness, usually momentary, caused by an insufficient supply of blood to the brainTechnical name: syncope

Derived forms of faint

fainter, nounfaintingly, adverbfaintish, adjectivefaintishness, noun

faintly, adverbfaintness, noun

Word Origin for faint

C13: from Old French, from faindre to be idle

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with faint

faint

see damn with faint praise.

faint

OTHER WORDS FOR faint

Origin of faint

OTHER WORDS FROM faint

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH faint

Words nearby faint

Words related to faint

How to use faint in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for faint

Derived forms of faint

Word Origin for faint

Other Idioms and Phrases with faint