faint

adjective \ ˈfānt \

Updated on: 10 Dec 2017

Definition of faint

1 : lacking courage and spirit : cowardly

faint of heart

2 : weak, dizzy, and likely to faint

sick and faint from the pain
—Jack London

3 : lacking strength or vigor : performed, offered, or accomplished weakly or languidly

faint praise

a faint smile on her lips

4 : producing a sensation of faintness : oppressive

the faint atmosphere of a tropical port

5 a : hardly perceptible : dim

faint handwriting

b : vague 2a

haven't the faintest idea

—

faintish

play \ˈfān-tish\ adjective

—

faintishness

noun

—

faintly

adverb

—

faintness

noun

See faint defined for English-language learners

See faint defined for kids

Examples of faint in a Sentence

We heard a faint noise.
the faint glow of a distant light
There was a faint smile on her lips.
There's just a faint chance that the weather will improve by tomorrow.
a faint reminder of their former greatness
I'd better lie down; I feel faint.
She felt faint from hunger.

Recent Examples of faint from the Web

These Days There once was a time when risk managers’ phones would ring off the hook at the faintest whiff of trouble.

— siraj datoo, Bloomberg.com, "Automation on Wall Street Is Coming Sooner Than You Think," 20 Oct. 2017
The underside of the body is white to light gray with gray or black markings, and the legs are brown with faint white bands.

— sarah stolz, Cincinnati.com, "Stink bugs make unwelcome winter guests," 21 Oct. 2017
These letters reflect that the New Orleans Buccaneers company had never actually been dissolved, a fact that seems to have given Stern at least faint hope that his beloved club could be revived in a post-merger world.

— NOLA.com, "50 years ago, New Orleans' pro basketball scene began with ABA's Buccaneers," 20 Oct. 2017
And that something is a very faint line drawing of a penis on a log … in the background … for about half a second.

— gabriella paiella, The Cut, "Netflix Pulls Children’s-Show Episode for Inappropriate Drawing (It Was a Penis)," 21 Sep. 2017
For fun: Henry Kissinger has some very, very faint praise for Jared Kushner.

— rebecca onion, Slate Magazine, "The Angle: Civil Rights Erosion Edition," 20 Apr. 2017
The chemical, which has a faint odor of rotten eggs, causes thermal burns to skin upon contact and may cause irritation to the skin, eyes and mucous membranes, NOAA said.

— jason kelly, ajc, "Train leaks molten sulfur after derailing in Florida, firefighters say," 27 Nov. 2017
Inside his two-story plant there is a faint smell of oil as Sachiyo Ono assembles tiny parts with an electric screwdriver.

— yoshiaki nohara, Bloomberg.com, "Voters in Abe's Heartland Fear His Win Will Mean More Pain," 18 Oct. 2017
The hands have veins and sunspots and the faint wrinkles that gather around the wrists; the nails have cuticles, pale and precise.

— alex mar, WIRED, "Are We Ready for Intimacy With Androids?," 17 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'faint.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of faint

Middle English faint, feint, from Anglo-French, from past participle of feindre, faindre to feign, lose heart — more at feign

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

faint Synonyms

Synonyms

blear, bleary, blurry, dim, foggy, fuzzy, gauzy, hazy, indefinite, indistinct, indistinguishable, misty, murky, nebulous, obscure, opaque, pale, shadowy, unclear, undefined, undetermined, vague

Antonyms

clear, definite, pellucid

Related Words

dark, dusky, gloomy; impalpable, inappreciable, intangible, invisible; hieroglyphic (also hieroglyphical), incomprehensible, indecipherable, indiscernible, inexplicable, mysterious, obfuscatory, puzzling

Near Antonyms

bright, distinct, evident, obvious, plain; certain, firm, strong, sure

faint

verb

Definition of faint

intransitive verb

1 archaic : to lose courage or spirit

2 archaic : to become weak

3 : to lose consciousness because of a temporary decrease in the blood supply to the brain

See faint defined for English-language learners

Examples of faint in a Sentence

He always faints at the sight of blood.
She almost fainted from the pain.
She suffers from fainting spells.

Recent Examples of faint from the Web

A couple of fans fainted at the front of the stage, I'm told.

— doug maccash, NOLA.com, "Lil Wayne smokes up Champions Square, literally and figuratively," 27 Aug. 2017
School officials later insisted the video, which a Cincinnati police detective said showed Gabriel was bullied, revealed the student had merely fainted.

— anne saker, Cincinnati.com, "Gabriel Taye's parents: No one 'should ever have to go through that'," 8 Aug. 2017
Sending my love to those 4 people who fainted in the audience.

— sarah spellings, The Cut, "Jennifer Lawrence Becomes Latest Victim of Broadway’s 1984," 19 July 2017
The Crisis articles include more scenes of raw horror: a person was beheaded with a butcher knife, and a 12-year-old African-American girl fainted after being pulled from a trolley bus.

— allison keyes, Smithsonian, "The East St. Louis Race Riot Left Dozens Dead, Devastating a Community on the Rise," 30 June 2017
From sea to shining sea, neo-Nazis must have fainted.

— deroy murdock, National Review, "Excoriate the Left for the ‘Trump White Supremacy’ Lie," 15 Sep. 2017
Lydia Pond said shortly after leaving camp the woman fainted, and guides carried her and the husband down the mountain for medical care as the three remaining members of the slow team trudged forward.

— suzanne baker, Naperville Sun, "North Central staffer's Kilimanjaro climb a journey for charity," 14 Sep. 2017
The Establishment, a construct of Democrats and Republicans that rules in Washington no matter which party controls government, appears to be over its fainting spell following Donald Trump'selection.

— cal thomas, Alaska Dispatch News, "Trump should change his ways — and his critics should give him a chance," 2 Aug. 2017
The Crisis articles include more scenes of raw horror: a person was beheaded with a butcher knife, and a 12-year-old African-American girl fainted after being pulled from a trolley bus.

— allison keyes, Smithsonian, "The East St. Louis Race Riot Left Dozens Dead, Devastating a Community on the Rise," 30 June 2017

Origin and Etymology of faint

see ¹faint

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

faint Synonyms

Synonyms

black out, conk (out), keel (over), pass out, swoon

Antonyms

come around, come round, come to, revive

Related Words

break down, collapse; zonk (out)

faint

noun

Definition of faint

: the physiological action of fainting; also : the resulting condition : syncope 1

Examples of faint in a Sentence

shocking news can cause a person to fall into a faint

Recent Examples of faint from the Web

Coupling with an Aries is not for the faint of heart, but fellow fire signs Leo and Sagittarius have no problem keeping up with these spirited rams.

— aliza kelly faragher, Allure, "Zodiac Sign Love Compatibility: Which Signs to Date — and Which to (Maybe) Avoid," 27 Oct. 2017
People watching the cartoon will soon realize that the comedy isn’t for the faint of heart.

— yesha callahan, The Root, "How TV Writer Angela Nissel Is Bringing Her Unique Voice to Tyler, the Creator’s The Jellies, and Why Black Female Writers in Hollywood Need to Be Heard," 20 Oct. 2017
The Western Conference is not for the faint of heart.

— SI.com, "72 Reasons to Watch the 2017-18 NBA Season," 17 Oct. 2017
Needless to say, this eerie makeup look won't be for the faint of heart, but if you're not easily spooked (like me) and live for all things Halloween, then why not give this one a go?

— kaleigh fasanella, Teen Vogue, "This Faceless Makeup by Mimi Choi Is the Scariest Optical Illusion Ever," 19 Sep. 2017
That game last night wasn’t for the faint of heart.

— kirk kenney, sandiegouniontribune.com, "3 things we learned in the Aztecs' win over Stanford," 17 Sep. 2017
The Enquirer/Patrick Brennan This closing stretch for the first round of Major League Soccer expansion clearly won't be for the faint of heart.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "MLS: December timeline for expansion decisions still on," 5 Oct. 2017
His looks aren’t for the faint of fashion heart, which is why some of Scott’s most dedicated fans are ladies who have made their careers on standing out from the crowd.

— maya singer, Vogue, "What Do Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, and Gwen Stefani Have in Common? They All Love Jeremy Scott," 8 Sep. 2017
Betting on college football is not for the faint of heart.

— max meyer, SI.com, "Lane Kiffin Unearthed the Worst College Football Betting Beat This Season," 3 Nov. 2017

Origin and Etymology of faint

see ¹faint

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1792

See Words from the same year

faint Synonyms

Synonyms

blackout, insensibility, knockout, swim, swoon, syncope

Related Words

daze, stupor, trance; drowsiness, narcosis, sleep, somnolence

Other Medicine Terms

analgesia, angina, diabetes, hepatitis, homeopathy, logorrhea, palliate, pandemic

FAINT Defined for English Language Learners

faint

adjective

Definition of faint for English Language Learners

: not clearly seen, heard, tasted, felt, etc.
: very slight or small
: weak and dizzy

faint

verb

Definition of faint for English Language Learners

: to suddenly become unconscious

FAINT Defined for Kids

faint

adjective \ ˈfānt \

Definition of faint for Students

fainter; faintest

1 : not clear or plain : dim

faint handwriting

2 : weak or dizzy and likely to collapse

I feel faint.

3 : lacking strength

a faint attempt

a faint breeze

—

faintly

adverb

—

faintness

noun

faint

verb

Definition of faint for Students

fainted; fainting

: to suddenly lose consciousness

faint

noun

Definition of faint for Students

: an act or condition of suddenly losing consciousness

Medical Dictionary

faint

adjective \ ˈfānt \

medical Definition of faint

: weak, dizzy, and likely to faint

faint

intransitive verb

medical Definition of faint

: to lose consciousness because of a temporary decrease in the blood supply to the brain

faint

noun

medical Definition of faint

: the physiological action of fainting; also : the resulting condition : syncope

Learn More about faint

See words that rhyme with faint Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for faint Spanish Central: Translation of faint Nglish: Translation of faint for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of faint for Arabic speakers

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faint Synonyms

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faint

Definition of faint

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Origin and Etymology of faint

faint Synonyms

Synonyms

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Other Medicine Terms

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FAINT Defined for English Language Learners

faint

Definition of faint for English Language Learners

faint

Definition of faint for English Language Learners

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faint

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faintly

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faint

Definition of faint for Students

faint

Definition of faint for Students

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medical Definition of faint

faint

medical Definition of faint

faint

medical Definition of faint

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