feint

American  

[feynt] / feɪnt /

noun

• feints
  plural

1. a movement made in order to deceive an adversary; an attack aimed at one place or point merely as a distraction from the real place or point of attack.

   military feints; the feints of a skilled fencer.

2. a feigned or assumed appearance.

   His air of approval was a feint to conceal his real motives.

---

verb (used without object)

• feints,
  present (3rd person singular)
• feinted,
  past participle,  past
• feinting
  present participle

1. to make a feint.

   He feinted left, then struck his opponent with a roar.

verb (used with object)

• feints,
  present (3rd person singular)
• feinted,
  past participle,  past
• feinting
  present participle

1. to make a feint at; deceive with a feint.

2. to make a false show of; simulate.

feint ¹ British  

/ feɪnt /

noun

1. a mock attack or movement designed to distract an adversary, as in a military manoeuvre or in boxing, fencing, etc

2. a misleading action or appearance

---

verb

1. (intr) to make a feint

feint ² British  

/ feɪnt /

noun

1. printing the narrowest rule used in the production of ruled paper

---

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• feints
  plural

Participles

• feinting
  present
• feinted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• feint
  simple
• feints
  simple
• have feinted
  perfect
• has feinted
  perfect
• am feinting
  progressive
• are feinting
  progressive
• is feinting
  progressive
• have been feinting
  perfect progressive
• has been feinting
  perfect progressive

Past

• feinted
  simple
• had feinted
  perfect
• was feinting
  progressive
• were feinting
  progressive
• had been feinting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will feint
  simple
• will have feinted
  perfect
• will be feinting
  progressive
• will have been feinting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of feint

First recorded in 1670–80; from French feinte, from Old French feinte “fabrication,” noun use of feminine of feint “pretended,” past participle of feindre; see origin at feign

Explanation

Did you ever tell your parents you were going off to school, grabbed your book bag, and headed out the door...only to spend the rest of the day hanging out with your friends? Well, that was a feint, a super sneaky move designed to fool someone. Although military and political tactics are big on feints, their most common use is probably in sports — particularly boxing, where opponents are continually trying to fake each other out. As in Dundee's account of an Ali-Frazier match: "Ali feinted with a jab, and Frazier threw one of his own, missing." Not to be confused with faint, meaning "weak or feeble." However, a feint can be deliberately faint, as Ali knew and Frazier found out when the real right hook made contact.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

feint feints feinted feinting

But this is all a feint: The movie sets you up for one thing and then delivers another.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

There is no strict definition of a stutter, but under Fifa rules, a player is allowed to stop or feint during the run-up as long as they don't do it directly before kicking the ball.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

On a metatextual level, the show is itself a masterful feint.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2024

It's a feint, an effort to scare his opponents into believing his ascension is unstoppable, so they stop fighting him.

From Salon ● Dec. 30, 2023

I acted in the capacity of backer, or best-man, to the bridegroom; while a little limp pew-opener in a soft bonnet like a baby’s, made a feint of being the bosom friend of Miss Skiffins.

From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens

War is filled with flopping, feints and trickery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

He was just so skilful - it's the feints and rainbow flicks that are etched in your mind.

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2026

It was the culmination of a series of feints and bluffs in the preceding hours and days as the former reality TV star kept the world guessing.

From Barron's ● Feb. 28, 2026

The film’s feints and twists are fabulous as they explore how the internet’s promise has soured.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 12, 2026

Marcus feints left with his scim, and when Helene counters, he grins.

From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir

Kvaratskhelia feinted to run in behind, then dropped short, then looked to run in behind, dropped short again before eventually running in behind.

From BBC ● May 30, 2026

Juventus turned the match around completely two minutes later when Vlahović ran onto a through-ball and into the area and feinted his way past Inter defender Danilo D’Ambrosio.

From Seattle Times ● May 11, 2022

Lang hammered his entrance like the first hard few drops of an incoming storm and just as quickly feinted into an airy, gentle touch, from the ground to the clouds in an instant.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 19, 2021

The battle on film was a sequence of explosive lunges: mauve, black, gold and scarlet feathers flying as the birds leapt, feinted and struck out with talons.

From New York Times ● Aug. 18, 2021

He feinted and thrust at Chrysaor’s gut, but Chrysaor anticipated the move..

From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan

Bud snaked his way inside, feinting in the middle distance and eating some shots on the way in — but nothing that rattled him.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2023

Salesses knows exactly how to get these giants pounding up and down the court — pivoting, feinting, shooting!

From Washington Post ● Jan. 11, 2023

Moore for a 10-yard score — a pass made possible by Newton stepping up in the pocket, feinting a scramble to draw in the safety to leave Moore open.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 21, 2021

First, Turnbull slipped after feinting to play the ball out in his own box, and that allowed Mitchel Bakker to square for Hincapie to sweep home the opener on 25 minutes.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2021

Jabbing and feinting, he edged sideways, putting the fire between them once more.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

Related Words

• ruse