adjective

pale

payl

adjective

Light in colour, or lacking the usual colour, especially in the face.

"She looked pale after the long flight."

"He painted the room a pale shade of yellow."

verb

To become pale, especially from shock, fear, or illness.

"He paled when he heard the news."

To seem weaker or less impressive by comparison.

"Her early work pales next to what she achieved later."

noun

The historical phrase "beyond the pale," meaning outside acceptable limits or boundaries.

"His comments were considered well beyond the pale."

How to Use Pale

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishLight-coloured, especially a face that has lost colour, or (as a verb) to lose colour or seem lesser by comparison.

Common mistake

"Beyond the pale" doesn't mean pale in colour at all — it comes from a separate word for a boundary fence, meaning "outside acceptable limits."

Common pairings

pale in comparison go pale pale blue beyond the pale

Word Forms

paler comparative, paled past tense, paled past tense, pales plural, pales singular, pales singular, palest superlative

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Etymology

From Old French pale, from Latin pallidus ("pale, pallid"). The noun sense meaning "boundary" comes from a separate root, Latin palus ("stake"), referring to a fence of stakes marking a territory's limits — the origin of the phrase "beyond the pale."

Rhymes for pale

ale male sale gale tale kale vale dale Yale bale hale cale

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