faint
Americanadjective
-
fainter,
comparative
-
faintest
superlative
-
lacking brightness, vividness, clearness, loudness, strength, etc..
a faint light;
a faint color;
a faint sound.
- Synonyms:
- dull, dim, ill-defined, indistinct
-
feeble or slight.
faint resistance;
faint praise;
a faint resemblance.
- Synonyms:
- weak, irresolute
-
feeling weak, dizzy, or exhausted; about to lose consciousness.
faint with hunger.
- Synonyms:
- languid
-
lacking courage; cowardly; timorous.
Faint heart never won fair maid.
- Synonyms:
- dastardly, timid, fearful, pusillanimous
-
Law. unfounded.
a faint action.
verb (used without object)
-
faints,
present (3rd person singular)
-
fainted,
past participle, past
-
fainting
present participle
-
to lose consciousness temporarily.
-
to lose brightness.
-
Archaic. to grow weak; lose spirit or courage.
noun
-
faints
plural
adjective
-
lacking clarity, brightness, volume, etc
a faint noise
-
lacking conviction or force; weak
faint praise
-
feeling dizzy or weak as if about to lose consciousness
-
without boldness or courage; timid (esp in the combination faint-hearted )
-
no idea whatsoever
I haven't the faintest
verb
-
to lose consciousness, esp momentarily, as through weakness
-
archaic to fail or become weak, esp in hope or courage
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
fainternoun
-
faintishnessnoun
-
faintnessnoun
-
overfaintnessnoun
-
faintishadjective
-
overfaintadjective
-
unfaintingadjective
-
faintinglyadverb
-
faintlyadverb
-
overfaintlyadverb
-
unfaintlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
faintsimple
-
faintssimple
-
have faintedperfect
-
has faintedperfect
-
am faintingprogressive
-
are faintingprogressive
-
is faintingprogressive
-
have been faintingperfect progressive
-
has been faintingperfect progressive
Past
-
faintedsimple
-
had faintedperfect
-
was faintingprogressive
-
were faintingprogressive
-
had been faintingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of faint
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French: literally, “feigned,” past participle of faindre, feindre “to feign”; see feign
Explanation
Something faint has no courage or vigor. If you suddenly round the corner and see a gang of bullies staring straight at you, chances are you'll feel faint. Faint comes from the French feindre, for being cowardly or shirking duties. We usually use it to mean without great strength. If you faint, you pass out, from low blood supply to your brain. If you feel faint, you feel weak. Faint also means dim or vague. If you're staring out to sea, you might see the faint outline of an approaching ship. If you really can't remember the answer to something, say you "haven't the faintest idea."
Vocabulary lists containing faint
Unit 1: Telling Details
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As the Saguaro was moved to greater simulated distances, the surrounding galaxy became too faint to see.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
She shrugs off Maddie getting faint at dance class because she threw up her lunch.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
Those not in the know might faint at the prices—$4,600 for a cashmere-and-silk sweater, $11,800 for a suede jacket—but sticker shock hasn’t dampened sales.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Over the next 18 months, the gentle gravitational tug of the Earth, Moon and Sun, along with even light from the Sun, gave a faint push.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Present Elliot’s jaw had dropped open, and I reached over and put my hand under his chin, closing his mouth with a faint click of teeth.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Yasser regularly faints when she tries to stand.
From Barron's ● Mar. 22, 2026
When Louise, angling for attention, participates in her church’s Inner Beauty pageant, her talent is holding her breath until she faints.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 7, 2026
In the pilot, the third-year medical student faints the first time in the exam room and has painfully awkward exchanges with her peers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2025
O’Sullivan determined that Darcie was suffering psychosomatic seizures and faints, very real but not caused by a physical problem.
From Salon ● May 13, 2025
Everybody knows that I’m the girl who’s really shy and practically faints at the sight of a boy.
From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers
When compared with sunlit features on Mars, 3I/ATLAS appeared roughly 10,000 to 100,000 times fainter.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 24, 2026
As brands go through creative directors like tissues, the connection to what made a house beloved seems to get fainter and fainter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
Most cell phones now use two GPS frequency bands -- one that is older and fainter, and a second that is newer and stronger.
From Barron's ● Mar. 8, 2026
However, visibility could be affected by bright moonlight from the recent Sturgeon Moon, making it harder to see the fainter streaks.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2025
He heard the men’s feet crunch away and then the purr of the cart growing fainter and fainter until it was gone.
From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer
Like hundreds of volunteers and rescuers, he has spent hours clinging to the faintest hope there may be survivors in the rubble, despite the 7.4 magnitude quake that struck this coffee capital on Monday morning.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
K2-18b may be silent for now, but scientists are steadily improving their ability to detect even the faintest signs of technology beyond our solar system if they are ever there to be heard.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
"I really haven't the faintest idea as to what I've done," he said.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
Is there the faintest suggestion in the room that, if you do this, you won’t get older?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2025
You probably don’t have the faintest idea what I’m talking about, so let me “begin at the beginning.’
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
I learned about chocolatines last year from the Journal’s Joshua Robinson, who fainted from embarrassment when I walked into a Toulouse patisserie and ordered a “chocolatini,” like it was happy hour at an airport Chili’s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
His father vomited and fainted in the ambulance, as his first child became unresponsive.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
One 32-year-old Berliner, Diane, told AFP she had fainted from the heat once already, despite drinking three litres of water.
From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026
Last year, Price fainted while appearing at a groundbreaking for the upgrade of the Los Angeles Convention Center, which is located in his district.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2026
“I wouldn’t lift a hand for that woman if she fainted in front of me. Thank you, son,” she said, and smiled.
From Full of Beans by Jennifer L. Holm
A majority -- 87 percent -- of respondents reported at least one health-related impact during the sweltering week, including disrupted sleep, tiredness at work as well as dizziness, fainting and a faster heartbeat.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
For all its immortal ideas and all those outsized news reports of people fainting, “The Exorcist” could’ve faded from memory if so much of what came after didn’t prove to be a cheap imitation.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
As it worsens, however, it can lead to fatigue, chest pain, shortness of breath, fainting, heart failure, and in some cases premature death.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026
During the 1978 inquest investigation, Nix had initially claimed Andrea took a bath on her own and later complained of itchy legs before fainting, jurors heard.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
A moment later the owl dæmon swooped with a clumsy fainting movement to his side, and half lay on the snow, struggling to fold her wings.
From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
