On ‘Feign,’ ‘Feint,’ and ‘Faint’

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pretend means “pretend or fake something (such as illness).” feints also related to deception, but usually refers to physical movements intended to distract an opponent, such as a mock punch. Final, faint as an adjective can mean “virtually imperceptible” and as a verb referring to the loss of consciousness.

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IN pretend, feintsAnd faintEnglish has three similar-sounding verbs, which overlap in certain ways which can lead to them being confused.

Meaning of ‘pretend’

pretend means to make something appear fake, or to pretend that it is real.

She usually pretend sick, hoping the school nurse will send her home. That’s why when she heard her brother, Tanner, tell her mother he had a sore throat and was going to see a doctor instead of going to school that day, she said she also felt nauseous. . — Jordan Erb, Indianapolis starOctober 22, 2020

The manager turned to me and winked. He is not a chess novice. He’s in a hurry. Time and again, customers come and comment on the chessboard. Manager pretend ignorance, propose a bet, and proceed to beat them one by one. — Steve Straessle, Arkansas Democracy-GazetteDecember 26, 2020

‘feint’ meaning

feints is another verb related to deception. As a noun, it basically means “something to pretend”, the verb thinks feints usually applies specifically to a movement made with the body to distract an opponent (as in a fistfight).

After cracking Wineland with a forehand, O’Malley lure with a headbutt before loosening up with another overhand, which struck Wineland straight in the jaw. — Brent Brookhouse, _CBSSports.com _, June 7, 2020

Naturally, feints found frequent use of similar bait-like movements performed in other sports:

[Jayson Tatum] calmly assessed Derrick Jones Jr., dribbling twice between his legs, lure as if he was going to drive to the right and then, at the last second, recoil the ball to set up what quickly became his trademark move: three steps back. It missed. —Michael Pina, GQSeptember 17, 2020

Before the Bears’ first attack, Smith lure toward the row, then deep into the Cover-2 row with Harris. — Jim Souhan, Minneapolis StarNovember 22, 2020

Of the two verbs, pretend has a broader meaning, and so you can see it for verbs of motion where feints would be appropriate (as in “the quarterback pretends to throw before running with the ball”). But the reverse is not true; for example, people don’t “fall ill”.

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Meaning of ‘fade’

feints there is a homonym in faint, can be an adjective meaning “almost imperceptible” (as in “heard a faint howl” or “a faint light on the horizon”) or a lack of courage (“not for the faint of heart”), among other things. Verb faint has an ancient meaning of referring to a loss of strength or spirit, but in modern usage almost exclusively means “loss of consciousness”:

On a Thursday morning in Hyde Park, two students in a basic baking class faint, according to CIA spokeswoman Amanda Secor. When health officials from the Roosevelt Fire Department responded, others said they were not feeling well. — John W. Barry, Poughkeepsie magazineSeptember 18, 2020

Syncope is the medical term for faint. When you faint, you lose consciousness for a short time. In general, syncope is caused by decreased blood flow to the brain, which can lead to a temporary loss of consciousness. — Jill Seladi-Schulman, health lineJune 15, 2020

A person may feign fainting while faking illness, but an athlete who has fainted rather than falsified will require medical attention.

All three words share a common ancestor in enemyan Anglo-French verb meaning “to make, fabricate, pretend, displease, or fade.”

Categories: Usage Notes
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn

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