faint of heart

F

faint of heart,
also faint-hearted

Meaning

• to not be strong enough to handle a situation.
• to be weak.
• shortage the bravery to face something complicated or unsafe.
• lack the courage to tackle a tough or dangerous situation.

Example in Sentences

1. This movie is not for those who are faint of heart. You better go to bed right now.
2. I am not among the faint of heart. I can bear this news just as much as anyone else.
3. Nobody knew that such a strong man would be faint-hearted. It broke me to see him cry at his wife’s funeral.
4. Nobody can remain faint of heart throughout their lives. You will have to toughen up too.
5. Can you believe that he is so faint of heart that he would jump if he saw even a domestic animal at his home?
6. Are you faint-hearted? If not, then proceed, else I would caution you to not take this ride at the funfair.
7. You cannot still think that I am faint of heart after I went through the horror maze all by myself!
8. I saw a horror movie at night last week and fell faint of heart.

Origin

The phrase originates from the medical world, where someone who is faint of heart is required to not be put through anything stressful. Consequently, people who were not able to handle stress were referred to as faint of heart.

One of our users, Angela White, suggests that the phrase “faint-hearted” dates from around 1400 and means cowardly, timorous, growing weak or unable to rise to the occasion. Faint derives from the Old French “faint” or “feint”, which meant “false, deceitful, weak, or cowardly” from the past participle of “feindre.” In the Adages of Erasmus (c.1545) comes the phrase “faint heart never won fair maiden.”

Bravery, Fear, Heart