feint

Founding-era definition · Webster's 1828 American Dictionary

FEINT, noun 1. An assumed or false appearance; a pretense of doing something not intended to be done. Courtley's letter is but a feint to get off. 2. A mock attack; an appearance of aiming at one part when another is intended to be struck. In fencing, a show of making a thrust at one part, to deceive an antagonist, when the intention is to strike another part. FEINT, adjective or participle passive Counterfeit; seeming. [Not used.]
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI

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