pale

1 of 5

adjective

ˈpāl

paler; palest

Synonyms of pale next

: deficient in color or intensity of color : pallid

a pale complexion

b(1)

: having color of reduced saturation (see saturation sense 4a)

a pale pink

(2)

: light in color especially relative to others of its kind

pale beers

: not bright or brilliant : dim

a pale sun shining through the fog

: feeble, faint

a pale imitation

palely

ˈpāl-lē

adverb

paleness

ˈpāl-nəs

noun

palish

ˈpā-lish

adjective

pale

2 of 5

verb (1)

paled; paling

intransitive verb

: to become pale

transitive verb

: to make pale

pale

3 of 5

noun

: an area or the limits within which one is privileged or protected (as from censure)

conduct that was beyond the pale

: a space or field having bounds : enclosure

The cattle were led into the pale.

: a territory or district within certain bounds or under a particular jurisdiction

British culture survived even within the Roman pale.

: one of the stakes of a palisade

: picket sense 1

: a perpendicular stripe on a heraldic shield

archaic : palisade, paling

pale

4 of 5

verb (2)

paled; paling

transitive verb

: to enclose with pales : fence

pale-

5 of 5

Example Sentences

Adjective the pale wood of the table The walls were painted a pale blue. She has a pale complexion. Her illness had left her pale and weak. She grew pale with fright. Are you feeling well? You look pale. the pale light of dawn See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Symptoms can include abdominal pain, fatigue, jaundice, dark urine and pale stool. —

Elizabeth Napolitano, CBS News, 14 June 2023 On the other hand, flowers that are fragrant at night—when moths are active—tend to be white or pale. —

WIRED, 12 June 2023 Other safe assets exist but pale in comparison to Treasuries. —

Krystal Hur, CNN, 11 June 2023 For an architect trying to renovate his beloved but crumbling Palace of Justice in Brussels, once the largest building in the world, the design challenges pale compared with the political ones. —

Sarah Hurtes, New York Times, 9 June 2023 Dark eyes don't tend to get lighter, but caramel-color eyes will frequently become dark brown, and pale blue eyes might change to a deeper shade of blue, green, or brown. —

Parents Editors, Parents, 7 June 2023 Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until garlic is pale golden brown, 9 to 12 minutes. —

America's Test Kitchen, Chicago Tribune, 7 June 2023 In the photo, Lilibet is pictured smiling happily on a lawn while wearing a pale blue diaphanous dress and a little white bow in her ginger hair. —

USA TODAY, 5 June 2023 Beatrice chose a pale blue frilly gown by Needle and Thread and accessorized with a bow in her hair. —

Sophie Dweck, Town & Country, 2 June 2023

Noun

His three-month financial total pales in comparison to Cardin's fundraising at the same point in his last race: In the first quarter of 2017, Cardin's campaign raised $325,000. —

Bridget Bowman, NBC News, 14 Apr. 2023 Miller and Boston are projected to be the top two picks in this year’s W.N.B.A. draft, but Miller’s supporting cast pales in comparison. —

Talya Minsberg, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2023 The creation of the cabinet-level position could infuse energy into Boston’s nightlife scene, which critics say pales in comparison to cities like New York and Chicago. —

Diti Kohli, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Feb. 2023 This is wise, given that American dominance of the global arms market means the economic benefits of a few additional sales pale in comparison to strategic advantages conferred by arms transfers. —

Jonathan D. Caverley, WSJ, 2 Mar. 2023 But the additional tax charges — which ExxonMobil, for its part, is challenging in court — and investments in new sources of energy pale in comparison with the sum the world’s five biggest private sector oil and gas companies handed to shareholders: the bounty exceeded $100 billion for 2022. —

Hanna Ziady, CNN, 8 Feb. 2023 Perhaps after playing in an NBA Finals and winning a Game 7 as a coach, the stakes of a late-February game between two teams headed toward the play-in tournament pale in comparison. —

Andrew Greif, Los Angeles Times, 26 Feb. 2022 This latest breach, although serious, pales in comparison to the breach T-Mobile suffered in January when a hacker managed to steal the personal information of 37 million customers. —

Matthew Humphries, PCMAG, 2 May 2023 Despite similar training requirements, even the $109K average pales in comparison to their human medicine counterparts. —

Joe Mutascio, The Indianapolis Star, 29 Apr. 2023

Verb

And that audience size pales in comparison to what Trump could bring in at his peak. —

Tori Otten, The New Republic, 6 June 2023 So the team assumed the effect of smoke on La Niña would pale in comparison. —

Bymaya Wei-haas, science.org, 10 May 2023 However, off-roading cognoscenti will note that its departure angle of 28.5 degrees pales in comparison to the Defender 110’s 40-degree figure. —

Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 28 Apr. 2023 These regions still pale in comparison to Silicon Valley, which in 2022 drew $74.9 billion in investments across 3,206 deals. —

Danielle Abril, Washington Post, 12 Apr. 2023 While Sovereign Labs’ round may pale in comparison to those, the cash influx, Evans told Fortune, will allow the firm to expand beyond three employees—which includes the cofounders—and work to complete a prototype of its developer kit in the coming months. —

Ben Weiss, Fortune, 30 Jan. 2023 The amount of money at stake for both sides pales in comparison to the typical legal costs of a multiyear lawsuit, private security detail and expert witness-heavy trial. —

CBS News, 30 Mar. 2023 With a price that low, however, there are some concessions to be made, like a lack of VRR and a lower refresh rate that is capped to 60 hertz—paling in comparison to some of the other more expensive options. —

Hunter Fenollol, Popular Mechanics, 15 Mar. 2023 No more snipe whistling in the meadow, no more piping of widgeons and chattering of teal as darkness covers the marshes; no more whistling of swift wings when the morning star pales in the east? —

Paul A. Smith, Journal Sentinel, 26 Feb. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pale.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English pale, paal, palle, borrowed from Anglo-French pale, palle, paille (also continental Old French), borrowed (with loss of unstressed -id-) from Latin pallidus "pale, colorless," formed with the adjective suffix -idus from the same base as pallēre "to be pale or bloodless, have a pale color," pallor "paleness of complexion, loss of color" — more at fallow entry 1

Verb (1)

Middle English palen, borrowed from Anglo-French palir (continental Old French palir, paloïr), going back (with conjugation change) to Latin pallēscere "to grow pale, turn a pale color," inchoative derivative of pallēre "to be pale or bloodless, have a pale color" — more at fallow entry 1

Noun and Verb (2)

Middle English, from Anglo-French pel, pal stake, from Latin palus — more at pole

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 5

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of pale was in the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Cite this Entry

Style

“Pale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pale. Accessed 20 Jun. 2023.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

pale

1 of 3 adjective

ˈpā(ə)l

paler; palest

: light in color or shade : not vivid

a pale pink

: not having the warm skin color of a person in good health : pallid

became pale

: not bright or brilliant : dim

pale sunshine

palely adverb

paleness noun

pale

2 of 3 verb

paled; paling

: to make or become pale

pale

3 of 3 noun

: a stake or picket of a fence

: an enclosed place

: territory within clearly marked bounds or under a particular authority

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English pale "lacking in color," from early French pale (same meaning), from Latin pallidus (same meaning), from pallēre "to be pale"

Noun

Middle English pale "paling, picket," from early French pal "stake," from Latin palus (same meaning) — related to travel see Word History at travel