fain 1 of 2

adjective

ˈfān How to pronounce fain (audio)
Definition of fainnext
as in willing
having a desire or inclination (as for a specified course of action) during the Renaissance most men of science and the arts were fain to express their noblest thoughts in Latin, the lingua franca of the learned

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

fain

2 of 2

adverb

as in rather
by choice or preference "I would fain not marry that suitor, my lord," the princess pleaded

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fain
  1. willing
  2. rather
  3. ready
  4. willingly
  5. glad
  6. inclined
Adjective
  • Once risk boundaries become clearer, previously cautious institutional investors may prove more willing to deploy capital.
    — , CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Gifty, whimsical and fun, has dyslexia and is only willing to read in front of Mercy.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of willing
Adverb
  • Twelve AGs led by Rob Bonta of California had been moving the antitrust trust case forward with a trial date set for March before the sides came together rather suddenly over the course of a few days.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Your neighbor merely moved up the timeline in a rather inept way.
    — Judith Martin, Washington Post, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of rather
Adjective
  • The next mission, Artemis IV, is slated for no sooner than 2028 and would have astronauts landing on the moon in either Blue Moon or Starship, whichever is ready first.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 29 Sep. 2026
  • This is the one who shows up, locked and loaded and ready for duty, in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Digger, one bumpy ride of a satire slash symphony-of-burning-Rome-fiddlers.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of ready
Adverb
  • Council member Dale Reynolds, who first made the motion to approve the ordinance, questioned whether there was any incentive for the public to willingly register their bikes.
    — Noah Daly, Idaho Statesman, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The front end simply carves into turns with the slightest shift of body position, leaning over willingly enough to eliminate conscious thought and hesitation right out of the gate.
    — Michael Van Runkle, Robb Report, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of willingly
Adjective
  • Somewhere between all the wings and dips, someone will be glad to see something fresh.
    — Danielle Bouchard, Martha Stewart, 26 Sep. 2026
  • The 6-foot, 200-pound Jenkins, known as Lightz by his teammates, wasn’t nervous about taking the field, just glad to be back on the football field.
    — Matt Murschel, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of glad
Adjective
  • The Hawks are more inclined to leave Moore at center this season, joining a group that also includes Connor Bedard, Nazar and Anton Frondell.
    — Kalen Lumpkins, Chicago Tribune, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Sussman is inclined to see such preferences as further evidence of capitalism’s moral failings.
    — Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of inclined
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

failures
fain
faint
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fain. Accessed 2 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of heterodox

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All