feint

[feynt]

See more synonyms for feint on Thesaurus.com

noun

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.
a feigned or assumed appearance: His air of approval was a feint to conceal his real motives.

verb (used without object)

to make a feint.

verb (used with object)

to make a feint at; deceive with a feint.
to make a false show of; simulate.

Origin of feint

1275–1325; Middle English < Old French feinte, noun use of feminine of feint pretended, past participle of feindre to feign

Can be confusedfain faint feign feint

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for feinted

cavil, maneuver, equivocate, shift, avoid, sidestep, outwit, evade, parry, baffle, foil, stonewall, quibble, duck, hedge, feint, prevaricate, shirk, tergiversate

Examples from the Web for feinted

Contemporary Examples of feinted

Incurring the wrath of the nihilists early, he feinted right.
The Forgotten Russian: The Genius of Nikolai Leskov
Benjamin Lytal
April 10, 2013
They feinted a mimic—like Gore, Romney strode to the podium across the convention floor.
Romney’s Lame Speech Might Have Gone Better Had He Learned From Bush 1 and Al Gore
Robert Shrum
September 1, 2012
The candidates, clearly worried about going too far, feinted and jabbed but threw no hard punches.
Rick Santorum Defuses Time Bomb of Social Issues in CNN Debate
Howard Kurtz
February 23, 2012

Historical Examples of feinted

For some moments he feinted and lunged, seeking an opening, however slight.
The Strollers
Frederic S. Isham
Just as before, Sutton feinted and saw his opening and swung.
Once to Every Man
Larry Evans
Again Conway drove him into a corner of the ropes, feinted for the stomach.
Once to Every Man
Larry Evans
The Battler feinted, swaying his body from side to side, and came at him.
Spring Street
James H. Richardson
Brion feinted and the Lig-magte's arm moved clear of his body.
Planet of the Damned
Harry Harrison

British Dictionary definitions for feinted

feint

noun

a mock attack or movement designed to distract an adversary, as in a military manoeuvre or in boxing, fencing, etc
a misleading action or appearance

verb

(intr) to make a feint

Word Origin for feint

C17: from French feinte, from feint pretended, from Old French feindre to feign

feint

noun

printing the narrowest rule used in the production of ruled paper

Word Origin for feint

C19: variant of faint

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 feinted

feint

1670s, "a false show, a pretended blow," from French feinte "a feint, sham," abstract noun from Old French feint (13c.) "false, deceitful," originally fem. past participle of feindre (see feign).

Borrowed late 13c. as adjective, but now obsolete in that sense. Also as a noun in Middle English with sense "false-heartedness" (early 14c.), also "bodily weakness" (c.1400).

feint

c.1300, feinten, "to deceive, pretend," also "become feeble or exhausted; to lack spirit or courage," from feint (adj.); see feint (n.). Cf. Old French feintir "be slow, delay." Sense of "to make a sham attack" is first attested 1833. Related: Feinted; feinting.