feint

There is no strict definition of a stutter, but under Fifa rules, a player is allowed to stop or feint during the run-up as long as they don't do it directly before kicking the ball.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

When Ghostface dismisses Gale as “an old irrelevant hag,” there’s no way of telling if that Gen Z dis is a hint, a feint or a mistake.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026

It's a feint, an effort to scare his opponents into believing his ascension is unstoppable, so they stop fighting him.

From Salon ● Dec. 30, 2023

Some bartenders pour you a drink then ignore you, circling back with the check and a feint at sincerity, hoping for a big tip.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 9, 2023

I should perhaps have found gratifying a little more polite resistance to my observation, but he offered no feint; he denied not her favor and accepted his lot with alacrity.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

War is filled with flopping, feints and trickery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

It was the culmination of a series of feints and bluffs in the preceding hours and days as the former reality TV star kept the world guessing.

From Barron's ● Feb. 28, 2026

The narrative is less sucker punch than brilliant feints and jabs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2025

After throwing a few early feints to get a read on his opponent, Itauma started to unload and quickly found the range for his heavy hands.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2025

He made two half-hearted feints toward the basket, hoping to catch Ben off balance and get an unchallenged set shot.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Politano turned provider two minutes before halftime as he sent Kvaratskhelia down the left and the winger cut inside, feinted and then squeezed a shot between Verona goalkeeper Lorenzo Montipò and the near post.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 21, 2023

The fight begun with both athletes showing patience as Volkanovski feinted and switched stances, while Makhachev looked for openings.

From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2023

Juventus turned the match around completely two minutes later when Vlahović ran onto a through-ball and into the area and feinted his way past Inter defender Danilo D’Ambrosio.

From Seattle Times ● May 11, 2022

Lang hammered his entrance like the first hard few drops of an incoming storm and just as quickly feinted into an airy, gentle touch, from the ground to the clouds in an instant.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 19, 2021

Dorian feinted, but Chaol didn’t fall for it.

From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas

The fight started with the Briton pushing forward, as he would throughout the following 25 minutes, feinting and landing leg kicks, while chants of "Colby, Colby" rung out around the arena.

From BBC ● Dec. 17, 2023

Bud snaked his way inside, feinting in the middle distance and eating some shots on the way in — but nothing that rattled him.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2023

Harrison hitches his bespoke wagon to that star, and the resulting scandal shows how deftly Korelitz moves as a satirist, feinting in one direction and then delivering a knockout blow in the other.

From Washington Post ● May 31, 2022

Donato would then put his team ahead in the shootout round, feinting right and deking goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to the left.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 17, 2022

He was oversimplifying here, skittering off there, dodging and feinting.

From "Go Set a Watchman: A Novel" by Harper Lee