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

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 confusedfain faint feign feint

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

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The facts are not faintly controversial for those who believe in reality: vaccination saves lives, families, and dollars.
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If you listened closely during the bleep, you could faintly hear Jacqueline Bissett still giving her speech.
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Maybe this is The Matrix (the first one that was faintly intelligible) after all.
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How do you get that “faintly falling,” that transcendent rhythm?
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With the thin, vertical scar down his right cheek, the general effect was faintly piratical.
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She turns as pale as ashes, and drops back on the sofa, and says, faintly: 'It is my husband.
The Queen of Hearts|Wilkie Collins
It was for the moment an alarming, and yet a faintly fascinating experience.
The Return|Walter de la Mare
Stradella's heart beat fast and faintly, and his fingers trembled when they touched the strings and made the first minor chord.
Stradella|F(rancis) Marion Crawford
The music and the cheering, faintly wafted to our straining ears, was inexpressibly sweet.
My Own Story|Emmeline Pankhurst
He faintly heard what sounded like the distant sighing of innumerable treetops.
A Voyage to Arcturus|David Lindsay

British Dictionary definitions for faintly

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

Word Origin and History for faintly

faintly

adv.

late 13c., from faint (adj.) + -ly (2).

faint

adj.

c.1300, "wanting in courage," now mostly in faint-hearted (mid-15c.), from Old French feint "soft, weak, sluggish," past participle of feindre "hesitate, falter, be indolent, show weakness, avoid one's duty by pretending" (see feign). Sense of "weak, feeble" is early 14c. Meaning "producing a feeble impression upon the senses" is from 1650s.

faint

"grow weak" (c.1300); "lose heart" (mid-14c.); see faint (adj.). Sense of "swoon" is c.1400. Related: Fainted; fainting.

Medicine definitions for faintly

faint

[ fānt ]

n.

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

adj.

Extremely weak; threatened with syncope.

Related formsfaint v.

Idioms and Phrases with faintly

faint

see damn with faint praise.

faint

adjective, faint·er, faint·est.

verb (used without object)

noun

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Origin of faint

Examples from the Web for faintly

faint

adjective

verb (intr)

noun

Word Origin for faint

faintly

faint

faint

faint

n.

adj.

faint