Feign \Feign\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Feigned; p. pr. & vb. n.
Feigning.] [OE. feinen, F. feindre (p. pr. feignant), fr.
L. fingere; akin to L. figura figure,and E. dough. See
Dough, and cf. Figure, Faint, Effigy, Fiction.]
1. To give a mental existence to, as to something not real or
actual; to imagine; to invent; hence, to pretend; to form
and relate as if true.
[1913 Webster]
There are no such things done as thou sayest, but
thou feignest them out of thine own heart. --Neh.
vi. 8.
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The poet
Did feign that Orpheus drew trees, stones, and
floods. --Shak.
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2. To represent by a false appearance of; to pretend; to
counterfeit; as, to feign a sickness. --Shak.
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3. To dissemble; to conceal. [Obs.] --Spenser.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
feign
v 1: make believe with the intent to deceive; "He feigned that he
was ill"; "He shammed a headache" [syn: sham, pretend,
affect, dissemble]
2: make a pretence of; "She assumed indifference, even though
she was seething with anger"; "he feigned sleep" [syn: simulate,
assume, sham]
WordNet (r) 2.0
36 Moby Thesaurus words for "feign":
act, act a part, affect, assume, bluff, counterfeit, cover up,
dissemble, dissimulate, do a bit, dramatize, fake, four-flush,
gammon, histrionize, let on, let on like, make a pretense,
make as if, make believe, make like, make out like, overact, play,
play a part, play a scene, play possum, playact, pretend, profess,
put on, put on airs, sham, simulate, tug the heartstrings, wear
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
affect, assume, dissemble, pretend, sham, simulate
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