feign

verb

ˈfān

feigned; feigning; feigns

transitive verb

: to give a false appearance of : induce as a false impression

feign death

: to assert as if true : pretend

He feigned that he was not feeling well so that he could leave the party early.

archaic

: invent, imagine

: to give fictional representation to

obsolete : disguise, conceal

intransitive verb

: pretend, dissemble

He told the truth because he was no good at feigning.

feigner noun

Example Sentences

I wince, feigning interest in a TV Guide and mumbling a hello.

Douglas Coupland, Generation X, 1991 Success keeps her busy. "Relaxation?" she asks, feigning puzzlement. "What's that?"

Jennifer Johnston, New Woman, November 1990 … Brad would sometimes clown or feign clumsiness just to crack her composed expression with a blush or a disapproving frown.

John Updike, Trust Me, 1987 I would never feign illness just to get out of a test.

Recent Examples on the Web Titania had to scream insecurity and yet feign complete confidence.

Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Sep. 2022 The point is not to feign fearlessness but instead to use fear as a motivation.

Ryan Mcgrath, Forbes, 27 June 2022 Krasinski had to feign surprise before getting into another gag about Marvel snipers in the audience.

Chris Smith, BGR, 29 July 2022 When Alex causes an international incident snubbing Henry at a royal event, the two are ordered to feign a friendship.

Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 9 June 2022 When faced with incriminating emails and documents in court, Monsanto officials feign amnesia while sticking to the company’s official line.

Dennis Harvey, Variety, 15 May 2022 When their animosity for one another hits the tabloids, the two are forced to feign friendship for the sake of amicable U.S.-British relations.

Leah Campano, Seventeen, 2 June 2022 Actors have been unstable types forever (playing other people for a living is odd work), but movie stars were once expected to feign elegance.

Nr Editors, National Review, 31 Mar. 2022 While some may have managed to feign an expression of shock after the logic of Trumpism reached its apotheosis on January 6, 2021, the simple fact of the matter is that the GOP had long since been bent into its current anti-democratic shape.

Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 21 Mar. 2022 See More

Word History

Etymology

Middle English feynen, feignen "to make, fabricate, make a likeness of, dissemble, pretend to be," borrowed from Anglo-French feign-, stem of feindre, going back to Latin fingere "to mold, fashion, make a likeness of, pretend to be," going back to Indo-European *d^hi-n-ǵ^h- (whence also Old Irish con-utuinc "builds, constructs,",Armenian dizanem "[I] heap up"), present tense derivative of *d^hei̯ǵ^h- "knead, shape," whence Gothic digan "to knead, form from clay," Old Church Slavic ziždǫ, zĭdati "to build," Lithuanian žiedžiù, žiẽsti "to form, shape (from clay)" (Balto-Slavic with metathesis of stop consonants), Armenian edēz "(s/he) heaped up," Tocharian B tsik- "fashion, shape, build," Sanskrit pari … déhat "will cover over, smear over"

Note: See also etymologies at dough, paradise, and thigmotropism.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

单词	feigns
释义	feign verb ˈfān feigned; feigning; feigns transitive verb 1 a : to give a false appearance of : induce as a false impression feign death b : to assert as if true : pretend He feigned that he was not feeling well so that he could leave the party early. 2 archaic a : invent, imagine b : to give fictional representation to 3 obsolete : disguise, conceal intransitive verb : pretend, dissemble He told the truth because he was no good at feigning. feigner noun Did you know? The Shape of the History of Feign Feign is all about faking it, but that hasn't always been so. An early meaning of the word is "to fashion, form, or shape." That meaning comes from its Latin source: the verb fingere. In time, people began fashioning feign to suggest the act of forming, or giving shape to, false appearances. Synonyms act affect assume bluff counterfeit dissemble fake pass (for) pretend profess put on sham simulate See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences I wince, feigning interest in a TV Guide and mumbling a hello. Douglas Coupland, Generation X, 1991 Success keeps her busy. "Relaxation?" she asks, feigning puzzlement. "What's that?" Jennifer Johnston, New Woman, November 1990 … Brad would sometimes clown or feign clumsiness just to crack her composed expression with a blush or a disapproving frown. John Updike, Trust Me, 1987 I would never feign illness just to get out of a test. Recent Examples on the Web Titania had to scream insecurity and yet feign complete confidence. Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Sep. 2022 The point is not to feign fearlessness but instead to use fear as a motivation. Ryan Mcgrath, Forbes, 27 June 2022 Krasinski had to feign surprise before getting into another gag about Marvel snipers in the audience. Chris Smith, BGR, 29 July 2022 When Alex causes an international incident snubbing Henry at a royal event, the two are ordered to feign a friendship. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 9 June 2022 When faced with incriminating emails and documents in court, Monsanto officials feign amnesia while sticking to the company’s official line. Dennis Harvey, Variety, 15 May 2022 When their animosity for one another hits the tabloids, the two are forced to feign friendship for the sake of amicable U.S.-British relations. Leah Campano, Seventeen, 2 June 2022 Actors have been unstable types forever (playing other people for a living is odd work), but movie stars were once expected to feign elegance. Nr Editors, National Review, 31 Mar. 2022 While some may have managed to feign an expression of shock after the logic of Trumpism reached its apotheosis on January 6, 2021, the simple fact of the matter is that the GOP had long since been bent into its current anti-democratic shape. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 21 Mar. 2022 See More Word History Etymology Middle English feynen, feignen "to make, fabricate, make a likeness of, dissemble, pretend to be," borrowed from Anglo-French feign-, stem of feindre, going back to Latin fingere "to mold, fashion, make a likeness of, pretend to be," going back to Indo-European d^hi-n-ǵ^h- (whence also Old Irish con-utuinc "builds, constructs,",Armenian dizanem* "[I] heap up"), present tense derivative of d^hei̯ǵ^h- "knead, shape," whence Gothic digan* "to knead, form from clay," Old Church Slavic ziždǫ, zĭdati "to build," Lithuanian žiedžiù, žiẽsti "to form, shape (from clay)" (Balto-Slavic with metathesis of stop consonants), Armenian edēz "(s/he) heaped up," Tocharian B tsik- "fashion, shape, build," Sanskrit pari … déhat "will cover over, smear over" Note: See also etymologies at dough, paradise, and thigmotropism. First Known Use 13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense Kids Definition feign verb ˈfān feigned; feigning : pretend sense 2 feigning sickness feigns verb present tense third-person singular of feign as in pretends to present a false appearance of I would never feign illness just to get out of a test Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance pretends assumes simulates professes acts dissembles affects conceals bluffs shams fakes poses forges imitates makes believe masquerades counterfeits impersonates camouflages puts on passes (for) disguises plays dissimulates feints masks playacts lets on malingers
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feign

verb

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Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Kids Definition

verb

verb