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faintly

adverb

Definition of faintlynext
as in quietly

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of faintly Three hours after Thomas Jefferson died at his Monticello home on July 4, 1826, his personal secretary, Nicholas Trist, snipped a lock of the Founder’s gray hair, still faintly reddish blond. — Andrew Lawler, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2026 The film is Bullock’s first in four years, and critics are ever-so-faintly praising her return to the big screen. — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 12 Sep. 2026 Related Stories While onstage before his new film bowed on the first night of the serene Colorado festival, Haigh seemed faintly astonished to be there at all. — Clayton Davis, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026 The scenery is almost irresistible in fall, when the air is faintly pumpkin-scented and the pace slows. — Taryn Shorr-McKee, Midwest Living, 26 Aug. 2026 The soil should be moist, faintly acid smelling, from its infusion of decayed compost. — Literary Hub, 24 Aug. 2026 Suddenly, her parents’ cheerful transparency—their coarse jokes, their eagerness to name things that should not be named—appeared to Nidhi in a faintly embarrassing light. — Madhuri Vijay, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026 Smell and Taste Fresh watermelon should smell clean and faintly sweet. — Anne Wolf, Martha Stewart, 14 Aug. 2026 Instead of using a mirror to gather starlight, MOTHRA has many telephoto lenses, like those on a camera, which can capture faintly glowing wisps of gas and other feeble emanations across a wider field of view. — Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 12 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for faintly
  1. quietly
  2. feebly
  3. softly
  4. low
  5. noiselessly
Adverb
  • The couple quietly eloped in 2025, with Rodgers deliberately keeping his new wife away from the celebrity circus that surrounded his previous relationships.
    — Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Big Night manages to be openly emotional and at the same time quietly but hilariously funny.
    — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of quietly
Adverb
  • Chief swam feebly across, joined the other two horses on the bank, and stood there shaking.
    — Dolores Brown, Outdoor Life, 17 June 2026
  • Judge lined it feebly into the glove of an outfielder.
    — Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 17 May 2026
Definition of feebly
Adverb
  • Around me, in the nosebleeds, were a mix of children in big friend groups and softly bopping couples.
    — Naaman Zhou, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Giannulli has the same softly layered brunette hair and delicate features, and in these images, the likeness is impossible to miss.
    — Daisy Maldonado, InStyle, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of softly
Adverb
  • Patrick Mahomes sidestepped pressure on the next snap, then moved up in the pocket and fired low to wide receiver Rashee Rice, who made a sliding catch in a window against zone coverage.
    — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Trump’s 32% approval rating on Monday set a new record low across both of his terms in office.
    — Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of low
Adverb
  • Small branches can be clipped quickly and almost noiselessly and fashioned into an effective blind in only a few minutes.
    — Bruce Brady, Outdoor Life, 8 Apr. 2026
  • On a brilliant midsummer morning, my wife and I stepped into a black Zodiac raft and drifted noiselessly among icebergs five stories high, their emerald and aquamarine walls gleaming above sapphire waters.
    — Pico Iyer, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Apr. 2025
Definition of noiselessly

Browse Nearby Words

fainting
faintly
faintness
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Cite this Entry

“Faintly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/faintly. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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