What is the meaning of the phrase ‘faint of heart’?
Lacking courage and afraid to take on risks or challenges.
What is the origin of the phrase ‘faint of heart’?
The idea of someone being faint of heart, or as it’s often termed ‘faint-hearted’ has a long history. For instance, there are 7 occurrences of the term ‘faint-hearted’ in the Christian Bible, each in different books, and in different contexts, including in Galatians 6:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:14, Hebrews 12:3, Deuteronomy 20:8, 2 Chronicles 13:7, Isaiah 7:4, Jeremiah 49:23.
You’ll have to recall however, that this bible was originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, so the term ‘faint-hearted’ entered the English language much later, possibly in the 1400s. The word ‘faint’ is thought to be derived from the Old French ‘faint’ or ‘feint’, meaning false, deceitful, weak or cowardly.
Oxford English Dictionary’s earliest evidence for the phrase ‘faint-hearted’ is from around 1440, in Promptorium Parvulorum. Meanwhile, their earliest evidence for the term ‘faint-heart’ is from 1580, in a translation by Thomas North.
The phrase ‘faint of heart’ originates from the medical world, where someone who is faint of heart is required to avoid anything stressful. Challenges that would strike fear into the heart are considered to be ‘not for the faint of heart’.
There’s a famous quote in the Adages of Erasmus from Middle English, circa 1545, that originally read ‘A coward verely neuer obteyned the loue of a faire lady’, which was refined in 1614 to read ‘Faint heart neuer wonne faire Lady’ which would now translate to ‘Faint heart never won fair maiden’.
The phrase ‘Faint heart never won fair maiden’ was further popularised via the opera Iolanthe, which was written by Gilbert and Sullivan in 1882. This phrase is often used to insinuate that someone needs to demonstrate courage if they are to acquire a partner, for example by having the courage to approach the person in question.
Be careful not to confuse the phrases ‘faint of heart’ and ‘faint hearted’ with the phrase ‘heavy hearted’, which means feeling great sadness.
What are some notable uses of the phrase ‘faint of heart’?
William Shakespeare used the phrase ‘faint-hearted’ in his historical play Henry VI in 1592, More recently, there was a song called ‘faint of heart’ by Vince Gill released in 2006, one by Jenn Bostic released in 2018, and a film by the same name released in 2020.
