## Meanings
1. To pretend to have a feeling or condition in order to deceive someone.
2. To pretend to move one way in order to trick an opponent, as in sport.

## Examples
- The pupil feigned sickness on the day of his exam.
- The striker feigned to his left, then shot the ball to the right.

## Synonyms
- deceive

## Derived Forms
- feignable
- feigned
- feigner
- feignful
- unfeigned

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *dʰeyǵʰ-
- Root: feynen
- Root: feindre
- Root: fingo

## Etymology
From Middle English feynen, feinen, borrowed from Old French feindre (“to pretend”), from Latin fingere (“to form, shape, invent”). Compare French feignant (present participle of feindre, literally “feigning”). Also compare feint and fiction.

## AI Etymology
Feign is from Middle English feynen, feinen, borrowed from Old French feindre (“to pretend”), from Latin fingere (“to form, shape, invent”). Compare French feignant (present participle of feindre, literally “feigning”). Also compare feint and fiction. Important recorded forms include *dʰeyǵʰ- (Proto-Indo-European), feynen (Middle English), feindre (Old French), and fingo (Latin). Current senses include to pretend to have a feeling or condition in order to deceive someone and to pretend to move one way in order to trick an opponent, as in sport. The wider family includes derived forms such as feignable, feigned, feigner, feignful, and unfeigned.

## Topics
- Emotions & Feelings

markdown

feign

Meanings

Thesaurus

Etymology

Topics

External links

Keyboard Shortcuts

General

Send feedback