- that cannot be clearly seen, heard or smelt
- a faint glow/glimmer/light
- a faint smell of perfume
- We saw the faint outline of the mountain through the mist.
- We could hear their voices growing fainter as they walked down the road.
- His breathing became faint.
Extra Examples- I can't make out the number—it's very faint.
- The whispers grew fainter and fainter, then stopped altogether.
- The faint glow of a match shone through the doorway.
- There was a faint glimmer of light from her window.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- sound
- become
- …
- extremely
- very
- rather
- …
- very small; possible but unlikely synonym slight
- There is still a faint hope that she may be cured.
- They don't have the faintest chance of winning.
- not enthusiastic
- a faint show of resistance
- a faint smile
- [not before noun] feeling weak and tired and likely to become unconscious
- She suddenly felt faint.
- The walkers were faint from hunger.
Extra ExamplesTopics Health problemsc1- What he saw made him feel faint with fear.
- I was faint with hunger.
- I was beginning to feel a little faint.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- feel
- look
- …
- extremely
- very
- almost
- …
- with
Word OriginMiddle English (in the sense ‘feigned’, also ‘feeble, cowardly’, surviving in faint-hearted): from Old French faint, past participle of faindre, from Latin fingere ‘mould, contrive’. Compare with feint.
Idioms
See faint in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionarydamn somebody/something with faint praise
- to praise somebody/something only a little, in order to show that you do not really like them/it
not have the faintest (idea)
- (informal) to not know anything at all about something
- I didn't have the faintest idea what you meant.
- He didn’t have the faintest idea how the others would react.
Check pronunciation:
faint