feignez

Feignez is a form of the French verb feindre, which means to feign or pretend. In everyday usage, feignez is the present indicative form for the second-person plural: vous feignez. It can also appear as an imperative in the vous form: Feignez ! meaning “Feign! / Pretend!” In other tenses, related forms exist such as feignez de plus an infinitive to express pretending to do something.

Etymology and meaning: feindre derives from Old French feindre and ultimately from the Latin fingere, “to shape, form, pretend.” The core sense is to simulate a feeling, condition, or action rather than to actually possess it. The verb is often used with de to introduce what is being pretended, for example feindre de ne pas comprendre or feindre de croire.

Usage and constructions: Feindre commonly appears with nouns or adjectives describing emotions or states, as in “Ils feignent l’étonnement” (They feign surprise). A frequent construction is feindre de + infinitive, meaning to pretend to do something, e.g., feindre de dormir or feindre de s’intéresser. In the passé composé, the past participle is feint, as in “Il a feint.” In the subjunctive, the form is feigniez for que vous feigniez, distinguishing it from the indicative vous feignez.

Relation to other terms: Feindre is synonymous with simuler and faire semblant, though feindre often has a stronger nuance of deliberate deceit or theatricality. The noun form feint describes a person or thing that is pretended or sham.

See also: feindre, faire semblant, simuler.