as in pallid
having an unhealthy yellowish skin color
He looked tired and sallow. She has a sallow complexion.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sallow
The film is aggressively teal with a sallow greige (gray-beige) overcast.
—
Courtney Howard, Variety, 9 Oct. 2025
If the entire plant looks sallow and yellow, give it better nutrition.
—Leanne Potts, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Sep. 2025
During a visit in August with two Times reporters, Mr. Perez’s skin was sallow.
—Aimee Ortiz, New York Times, 7 Dec. 2023
An awkward, sallow, provincial, minor army officer, Napoleon, was irresistibly drawn to Joséphine, attracted by her proximity to the most powerful men in France.
—Anne Higonnet, Vogue, 17 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sallow
Courtney Howard, Variety, 9 Oct. 2025
If the entire plant looks sallow and yellow, give it better nutrition.
—Leanne Potts, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Sep. 2025
During a visit in August with two Times reporters, Mr. Perez’s skin was sallow.
—Aimee Ortiz, New York Times, 7 Dec. 2023
An awkward, sallow, provincial, minor army officer, Napoleon, was irresistibly drawn to Joséphine, attracted by her proximity to the most powerful men in France.
—Anne Higonnet, Vogue, 17 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sallow
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sallow
Adjective
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Opponents of the proposal want the county to consider different locations for the park site, arguing the project may harm a variety of native species to the area, including the western spadefoot toad and pallid bats.—
Hannah Elsmore,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
4 May 2026
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While disrupting the business of an American multinational company may seem a pallid response to the destruction of an Iranian primary school where more than a hundred children were killed, such asymmetric attacks in the physical and digital realms have been a feature of this conflict.—
Sue Halpern,
New Yorker,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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If healthier people drop out of the risk pool, fewer people subsidize the people who get sick, Gidwani said.—
Andrew Jones,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
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Nara Organics issued the recall of all lots of Nara Organics Whole Milk Infant Formula after, according to the company recall notice, the FDA and CDC told the company about babies sick with infant botulism in California, Pennsylvania and Washington.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
15 June 2026
Adjective
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The royal siblings coordinated with their mother, whose pale blue Catherine Walker ensemble echoed the soft blue tones in George and Louis' matching ties and the delicate light blue detailing woven throughout Charlotte's cream dress.—
Stephanie Petit,
PEOPLE,
13 June 2026
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In a well-hydrated person, urine should appear pale yellow.—
Lisa Fitzpatrick,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2026
Adjective
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Instead, the moss’s telltale sign of woe is its glum, grayish hue, a waxen appearance that comes from ferns and algae that have crept over it.—
Sabrina Imbler,
Smithsonian Magazine,
14 Dec. 2020
Adjective
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But underneath, this micro-budget B movie is a jaundiced lament for the death of American individualism.—
Time,
Time,
10 June 2026
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The Scolding, 1965, a claustrophobic portrait of jaundiced and blotchy figures watching a contretemps, has some of the unsettling atmosphere of James Ensor’s 1890 canvas The Intrigue, in which a clutch of masked figures presses in on the viewer.—
Jeremy Lybarger,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
Adjective
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In the heyday of her career, her choppy hair, flat chest, sickly pallor and large darting eyes were a manic pixie dream.—
Carly Tagen-Dye,
PEOPLE,
3 June 2026
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First, the spots appear, then leaves yellow and fall off the plant, and your rose bush turns into a sickly collection of sticks with no flower buds in sight.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
29 May 2026
Adjective
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Another that sort of fits into the category of ‘kit curiosities’ is Brazil, who actually wore white with a blue trim until the 1950s, rather than the yellow that has become iconic since.—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
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In a sea of blue and white at KC Live, Mohammed, a Kansas City native, cheers on for Algeria an hour ahead of kickoff.—
The Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
17 June 2026
Adjective
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But hot temps can turn them into a waxy mess before your eyes.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
7 June 2026
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White phosphorus is a solid, waxy chemical that ignites instantly when combined with oxygen.—
Stephan Bisaha,
NPR,
6 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sallow.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sallow. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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