Etymology From Middle English faynt, feynt (“weak; feeble”), from Old French faint, feint (“feigned; negligent; sluggish”), past participle of feindre, faindre (“to feign; sham; work negligently”), from Latin fingere (“to touch, handle, form, shape, frame, form in thought, imagine, conceive, contrive, devise, feign”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeyǵʰ- (“to mold”). Cognate with feign and fiction and more distantly dough.
1
Of a being Lacking strength; weak; languid; inclined to lose consciousness
I felt faint after my fifth gin and tonic.
He almost fell faint due to the hot climate.
2
Lacking courage, spirit, or energy; cowardly; dejected.
Faint heart ne'er won fair lady.1789, Robert Burns, to Dr. Blacklock:
3
Barely perceptible; not bright, or loud, or sharp.
There was a faint red light in the distance.
4
Performed, done, or acted, weakly; not exhibiting vigor, strength, or energy.
faint efforts
faint resistance
1 more example
They damned the latest book with faint praise.
5
Slight; minimal.
a faint chance
do you have the faintest understanding of what they mean?2005, Plato, translated by Lesley Brown, Sophist, page 243b:
6
Archaic Sickly, so as to make a person feel faint.
Happening to pass a fruiterer’s on their way; the door of which was open, though the shop was by this time shut; one of them remarked how faint the peaches smelled.1843, Charles Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit:
Etymology From Middle English faynt, feynt (“weak; feeble”), from Old French faint, feint (“feigned; negligent; sluggish”), past participle of feindre, faindre (“to feign; sham; work negligently”), from Latin fingere (“to touch, handle, form, shape, frame, form in thought, imagine, conceive, contrive, devise, feign”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeyǵʰ- (“to mold”). Cognate with feign and fiction and more distantly dough.
Etymology From Middle English fainten, feynten, from the adjective (see above).
1
To lose consciousness through a lack of oxygen or nutrients to the brain, usually as a result of suddenly reduced blood flow (may be caused by emotional trauma, loss of blood or various medical conditions).
A fainting fit.
If I send them away fasting […] they will faint by the way.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Mark 8:8:
1 more example
But upon hearing the Honour which he intended her , she fainted away , and fell down as Dead at his Feet1713 September 22, Richard Steele, The Guardian, number 167:
2
To lose courage or spirit; to become depressed or despondent.
If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 24:10:
3
To decay; to disappear; to vanish.
November 12, 1711, Alexander Pope, letter to Henry Cromwell Gilded clouds, while we gaze upon them, faint before the eye.