Faint
[feɪnt] or [fent]
Definition
(noun.) a spontaneous loss of consciousness caused by insufficient blood to the brain.
(verb.) pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain.
(adj.) lacking conviction or boldness or courage; 'faint heart ne'er won fair lady' .
(adj.) indistinctly understood or felt or perceived; 'a faint clue to the origin of the mystery'; 'haven't the faintest idea' .
(adj.) deficient in magnitude; barely perceptible; lacking clarity or brightness or loudness etc; 'a faint outline'; 'the wan sun cast faint shadows'; 'the faint light of a distant candle'; 'weak colors'; 'a faint hissing sound'; 'a faint aroma'; 'a weak pulse' .
(adj.) lacking strength or vigor; 'damning with faint praise'; 'faint resistance'; 'feeble efforts'; 'a feeble voice' .
(adj.) weak and likely to lose consciousness; 'suddenly felt faint from the pain'; 'was sick and faint from hunger'; 'felt light in the head'; 'a swooning fit'; 'light-headed with wine'; 'light-headed from lack of sleep' .
Checker: Thelma--From WordNet
Definition
(superl.) Lacking strength; weak; languid; inclined to swoon; as, faint with fatigue, hunger, or thirst.
(superl.) Wanting in courage, spirit, or energy; timorous; cowardly; dejected; depressed; as, "Faint heart ne'er won fair lady."
(superl.) Lacking distinctness; hardly perceptible; striking the senses feebly; not bright, or loud, or sharp, or forcible; weak; as, a faint color, or sound.
(superl.) Performed, done, or acted, in a weak or feeble manner; not exhibiting vigor, strength, or energy; slight; as, faint efforts; faint resistance.
(n.) The act of fainting, or the state of one who has fainted; a swoon. [R.] See Fainting, n.
(v. i.) To become weak or wanting in vigor; to grow feeble; to lose strength and color, and the control of the bodily or mental functions; to swoon; -- sometimes with away. See Fainting, n.
(n.) To sink into dejection; to lose courage or spirit; to become depressed or despondent.
(n.) To decay; to disappear; to vanish.
(v. t.) To cause to faint or become dispirited; to depress; to weaken.
Checked by Conan
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. n. [1]. Swoon, faint away.[2]. Languish, grow weak, fail in vigor, lose strength.[3]. Be disheartened, be discouraged, be dejected, be depressed, lose courage, be dispirited, be down-hearted, sink into dejection.
a. [1]. Swooning, fainting away.[2]. Weak, feeble, drooping, exhausted, languid.[3]. Small, little, slight, inconsiderable.[4]. Dim, dull, not bright, not vivid.[5]. Fearful, timid, timorous, cowardly, dastardly, faint-hearted.[6]. Dejected, depressed, dispirited, disheartened, discouraged.
Edited by Davy
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Weak, languid, fatigued, unenergetic, timid, irresolute, feeble, exhausted,half-hearted, obscure, dim, pale, faded, inconspicuous
ANT:Strong, vigorous, energetic, fresh, daring, resolute, prominent, marked,conspicuous, glaring
Editor: Timmy
Definition
adj. wanting in strength: fading: lacking distinctness: not bright or forcible: weak in spirit: lacking courage: depressed: done in a feeble way.—v.i. to become feeble or weak: to lose strength colour &c.: to swoon: to fade or decay: to vanish: to lose courage or spirit: to become depressed.—v.t. (rare) to render faint.—n. a swoon.—p.adj. Faint′ed (Milt.) exhausted.—adjs. Faint′-heart Faint′-heart′ed cowardly: timorous.—adv. Faint′-heart′edly.—ns. Faint′-heart′edness; Faint′ing.—adj. Faint′ish slightly faint.—n. Faint′ishness.—adv. Faint′ly.—n. Faint′ness want of strength: feebleness of colour light &c.: dejection.—adj. Faint′y faintish.
Checked by Lilith
Unserious Contents or Definition
A woman's bluff.
Typist: Malcolm
Examples
- My heart turns faint, my mind sinks in darkness and confusion when I think of it. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- The unfortunate inquirer staggered against a wall, a faint cry escaped her --O! Mary Shelley. The Last Man.
- Robert Jordan heard the stream, far down in the rocks, and he saw a faint, thin smoke that rose from the sentry box. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- At these latter words the girl shivered again, and for a moment paused in her rowing, seeming to turn deadly faint. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- The swans had gone out on to the opposite bank, the reeds smelled sweet, a faint breeze touched the skin. D. H. Lawrence. Women in Love .
- In not one, however, showed the faintest sign of light. Edgar Rice Burroughs. The Gods of Mars.
- A military life had no charms for me, and I had not the faintest idea of staying in the army even if I should be graduated, which I did not expect. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- Dismounting, I laid Powell upon the ground, but the most painstaking examination failed to reveal the faintest spark of life. Edgar Rice Burroughs. A Princess of Mars.
- They then made out the faintest pallor of his face. D. H. Lawrence. Women in Love .
- And to this hour I have not the faintest notion what he meant, or what joke he thought I had made. Charles Dickens. Great Expectations.
- But it passed with the action of rising from her chair; and she sat down again very meekly, and fainted. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
- Tom silently resumed his task; but the woman, before at the last point of exhaustion, fainted. Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin.
- When I _sor_ him (such was Mr. Donne's pronunciation) about to spring, I thought I should have fainted. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- My lady has fainted, and we can't bring her to again. Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone.
- One of the best of these I entered; but I had hardly placed my foot within the door, before the children shrieked, and one of the women fainted. Mary Shelley. Frankenstein_Or_The Modern Prometheus.
- An idea is by its very nature weaker and fainter than an impression; but being in every other respect the same, cannot imply any very great mystery. David Hume. A Treatise of Human Nature.
- The traces of consumption may become fainter, or be wholly effaced: the inherent tendency to vice or crime may be eradicated. Plato. The Republic.
- The deeper he sank into this silence, the fainter hope there was--or so Darnay thought--of his softening in any slight degree. Charles Dickens. A Tale of Two Cities.
- But it had a preponderating tendency, when considered, to become fainter. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- It was fainter and duller. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- The next instant I threw myself through, and lay half-fainting upon the other side. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- Oliver availed himself of the kind permission, and fell to the floor in a fainting fit. Charles Dickens. Oliver Twist.
- I am not hysterical, nor given to fainting. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- Now, do be quiet, Maurice, or you'll be fainting again. Fergus Hume. The Island of Fantasy.
- Night fell upon us before we reached our goal, and, almost fainting from weariness and weakness, we lay down and slept. Edgar Rice Burroughs. A Princess of Mars.
- Sometimes Mr. Claypole faints himself, but the result is the same. Charles Dickens. Oliver Twist.
- I hold you till one or other of us faints or dies! Charles Dickens. A Tale of Two Cities.
- A young lady who faints, must be recovered; questions must be answered, and surprizes be explained. Jane Austen. Emma.
- Don't revive her to consciousness, while she only faints. Charles Dickens. A Tale of Two Cities.
Edited by Barrett