faint
(verb, adjective)
past tense: fainted
LISTEN
"I felt faint while I was walking."
Faint means ‘to lose consciousness temporarily.”
- Beth stood up too quickly and fainted.
- Tom had the flu and fainted on his way to the kitchen.
- Gene thought he saw a ghost and fainted.
Faint also means ‘lacking loudness, brightness or strength.’
- The shy boy's voice was very faint.
- There was a faint glow on the horizon just before sunrise.
- The watercolor of the garden used faint shades of pink and green.
Don't confuse it with
feint: to make a movement to deceive an opponent. Example: “The fighter feinted with his left hand and hit with his right hand.”
Common uses
feel faint: feel weak. Example: “The pregnant woman felt faint every time she walked across the room.”
In pop culture
Watch this compilation of fainting scenes in movies. Do you think this is a good dramatic technique?
There are other meanings of faint.
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