faint

[ feynt ]

/ feɪnt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR faint 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.

Nearby words

fain, fainaigue, faineance, faineant, fainites, faint, faint-hearted, faintest, faintheart, fainthearted, faintheartedly

Origin of faint

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

SYNONYMS 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 MORE SYNONYMS FOR faint ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

faint·er, nounfaint·ing·ly, adverbfaint·ish, adjectivefaint·ish·ness, noun

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

Can be confused

fain faint feign feint

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for fainted

He fainted several times in the courtroom, yet the judge refused to allow doctors in the courtroom.
Behind Bars for the Holidays: 11 Political Prisoners We Want to See Free In 2015|Movements.Org|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When he expresses concern over her bruised and disheveled appearance, she lies and tells him that she fainted.
How Downton Abbey's Joanne Froggatt Navigated Anna's Controversial Rape Arc|Kevin Fallon|August 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A House of Lords spokesman refused to identify which of the boys had fainted.
Thump! Audible Crash As Queen's Page Boy Collapses At Opening of Parliament|Tom Sykes|June 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was in very horrible condition, and I fainted onto the tarmac and had a head injury that resulted in a concussion.
Munib Masri: An Arafat Ally Looks Back|Anna Therese Day|November 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST

But once there, the men drugged Northup—he was not intoxicated, he said—and after a night of agony he fainted.
The ‘12 Years a Slave’ Book Shows Slavery As Even More Appalling Than In the Film|Jimmy So|October 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Those who had fainted, never forgave him for his failure to notify them of what was to happen.
The Story of a Life|J. Breckenridge Ellis
There was a loud shriek from the bar, and a bustle—the prisoner had fainted.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 62, No. 382, October 1847|Various
He fainted from loss of blood, and afterwards had high fever, just as a human being would have done, under like circumstances.
Cats|W. Gordon Stables
And Polly, her message delivered, fainted dead away in Miss Kings arms and was carried back unconscious to the infirmary.
Polly's First Year at Boarding School|Dorothy Whitehill
I—I failed you then; I fainted; I felt myself to blame for your betrayal.
Angel Island|Inez Haynes Gillmore

British Dictionary definitions for fainted

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

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

Medicine definitions for fainted

faint

[ fānt ]

n.

An abrupt, usually brief loss of consciousness; an attack of syncope.

adj.

Extremely weak; threatened with syncope.

Related forms

faint v.

Idioms and Phrases with fainted

faint

see damn with faint praise.