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Which character in a Shakespeare play is thought to feign madness?

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feign

American  

[fayn] / feɪn /

verb (used with object)

• feigns,
  present (3rd person singular)
• feigned,
  past participle,  past
• feigning
  present participle

1. 

   to represent fictitiously; put on an appearance of.

   to feign sickness.

2. to invent fictitiously or deceptively, as a story or an excuse.

3. to imitate deceptively.

   to feign another's voice.

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verb (used without object)

• feigns,
  present (3rd person singular)
• feigned,
  past participle,  past
• feigning
  present participle

1. to make believe; pretend.

   She's only feigning, she isn't really ill.

feign British  

/ feɪn /

verb

1. to put on a show of (a quality or emotion); pretend

   to feign innocence

2. (tr) to make up; invent

   to feign an excuse

3. (tr) to copy; imitate

   to feign someone's laugh

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Synonym Usage

See pretend.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• feigner
  noun
• feigningly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• feigning
  present
• feigned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• feign
  simple
• feigns
  simple
• have feigned
  perfect
• has feigned
  perfect
• am feigning
  progressive
• are feigning
  progressive
• is feigning
  progressive
• have been feigning
  perfect progressive
• has been feigning
  perfect progressive

Past

• feigned
  simple
• had feigned
  perfect
• was feigning
  progressive
• were feigning
  progressive
• had been feigning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will feign
  simple
• will have feigned
  perfect
• will be feigning
  progressive
• will have been feigning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of feign

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English fei(g)nen, from Old French feign-, present stem of faindre, feindre, from Latin fingere “to feign, invent, shape”

Explanation

For a more formal way to say pretend to or imitate, choose the verb feign. You might feign indifference when you hear about some gossip, but you're probably dying to know. Feign comes from the Latin fingere, "to devise, fabricate." The word fiction comes from the same source, so if you feign something such as sleep, you give off the fiction that you are sleeping. This can be done to be polite but also to deceive such as when you feign an injury or the flu so you can stay home from school or work. You can also feign an accent, though some are better at this than others.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

feign feigns feigned feigning

There’s no more reason for Kelly to feign deference to journalistic standards, because there’s no more glittering future in them.

From Slate ● May 6, 2026

The difference: Your guests won’t have to feign enthusiasm after the thirtieth photo of you “holding up” the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025

Still, the Dodgers won’t feign passivity this time.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2025

I would feign shock or dismay at its popularity if I didn’t already know that we are a nation of self-serving masochists.

From Salon ● Apr. 8, 2025

She would always feign surprise and delight and place the leaves in a vase in the middle of the table.

From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed

She feigns outrage loudly, according to people who like her, and yells maniacally, according to people who don’t.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

In response, Jenrick said the mistaken release was "a national embarrassment and today the justice secretary feigns anger at what happened."

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2025

Lydia, who craves to be seen by her family, feigns craving death because of her relationship with Barbara and Adam, who live in the afterlife.

From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2024

Noonan feigns surprise at the turnabout while crediting others for his team’s accomplishments.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2023

Slant watches over us all; Charles feigns sleep.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

She fell to the ground and, according to her account, feigned death.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026

That leaves only the feigned feud between Paul and Gronkowski — Brady’s longtime pal and New England Patriots teammate.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 20, 2026

As those scenes played in New York, Swift affectionately turned to Saunders and yelled, "YES!" as he giggled and covered his face in feigned shyness.

From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2025

I feigned disappointment but secretly sighed with relief: The last time I’d come, the pod’s door hadn’t closed, spiking my adrenaline even more during the seven-minute trip across the valley.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025

Joffrey feigned a yawn and turned to his younger brother.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

In some cases, bureaucrats resorted to ostentatious gestures and outright fraud, feigning adherence to unrealistic targets and masking underperformance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

Spaeny: It’s what every actor is thinking except they’re feigning ...

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

However, the “Hannah Montana” star did not end her mockery there—going on to accuse Cooper of feigning innocence about the proximity of their properties.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 31, 2026

Crisis actor is a derogatory label used by conspiracy theorists to allege that someone is deceiving the public -- feigning injuries or death -- while posing as a victim of a tragic event.

From Barron's ● Dec. 16, 2025

Brother Ugo pointed a gnarled finger at him, feigning hurt.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray