fainter; faintest
1
a
: hardly perceptible : dim
faint handwriting
b
: vague sense 2a
haven't the faintest idea
2
: weak, dizzy, and likely to faint
sick and faint from the pain—
Jack London
Jack London3
: lacking courage and spirit : cowardly
faint of heart
4
: lacking strength or vigor : performed, offered, or accomplished weakly or languidly
faint praise
a faint smile on her lips
5
: producing a sensation of faintness : oppressive
the faint atmosphere of a tropical port
fainted; fainting; faints
1
: to lose consciousness because of a temporary decrease in the blood supply to the brain
2
archaic
: to lose courage or spirit
3
archaic
: to become weak
: the physiological action of fainting
also
: the resulting condition : syncope sense 1
Synonyms
Examples of faint in a Sentence
Adjective
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.
Verb
He always faints at the sight of blood.
She almost fainted from the pain.
She suffers from fainting spells.
Noun
shocking news can cause a person to fall into a faint
Recent Examples on the Web
PCMAG, 27 Oct. 2024
The ability to see the shooting stars depends on clear nighttime skies, as a bright waning gibbous moon moves between full and last quarter phases, outshining more faint meteors and reducing the number of meteors visible to sky-gazers.
—Greg Wehner, Fox News, 21 Oct. 2024
Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 4 Oct. 2024
My mother nearly fainted during a four-kilometre walk in the sun.
—Mosab Abu Toha, The New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2024
Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 25 July 2024
The film was not for the faint of stomach, with several graphic, gory scenes — but Lanthimos’ absurdist humor ensured there was also a good amount of laughter from the crowd.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 18 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for faint 
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Adjective
Some of the stereo panning in the music is faint, but the effective stereo separation of the left and right channels helps highlight these subtleties.
—PCMAG, 27 Oct. 2024
The ability to see the shooting stars depends on clear nighttime skies, as a bright waning gibbous moon moves between full and last quarter phases, outshining more faint meteors and reducing the number of meteors visible to sky-gazers.
—Greg Wehner, Fox News, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
But a day after nearly fainting over the financial details, as Joe has recollected, the lead producer in the deal, Harvey Weinstein, got his comeuppance.
—Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 4 Oct. 2024
My mother nearly fainted during a four-kilometre walk in the sun.
—Mosab Abu Toha, The New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2024
Noun
More From The Post Man faints while driving 70 mph on highway.
—Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 25 July 2024
The film was not for the faint of stomach, with several graphic, gory scenes — but Lanthimos’ absurdist humor ensured there was also a good amount of laughter from the crowd.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 18 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for faint
Articles Related to faint
Dictionary Entries Near faint
Cite this Entry
“Faint.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/faint. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
faint
2 of 3 verb
: to lose consciousness
faint
3 of 3 noun
: an act or condition of fainting
Medical Definition
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