pallor

noun

pal·​lor ˈpa-lər 

: deficiency of color especially of the face : paleness

The boy's sickly pallor concerned his parents.

Examples of pallor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Already, his story had begun to take on the grim pallor of tragedy. — Jack Lang, New York Times, 28 May 2026

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

Despite growing awareness of the connection between tanning beds and skin cancer, devotees continue to use them to banish a wintry pallor. — Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 12 Dec. 2025

The pallor of mortality is a reminder, for some, of the heat wave in the summer of 2003, when nearly fifteen thousand people perished in France. — Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 27 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English pallour, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French palur, pallor "paleness, wanness, pale yellow color (of gold), borrowed from Latin pallor "paleness of complexion, loss of color," noun derivative, with the suffix -ōr-, -or (early Latin -ōs), from the base of pallēre "to be pale or bloodless, have a pale color," pallidus "pale, colorless" — more at fallow entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pallor

• calor
• salar
• valor
• valour

Kids Definition

pallor

noun

pal·​lor ˈpal-ər 

: paleness especially of the face

Medical Definition

pallor

noun

pal·​lor ˈpal-ər 

: deficiency of color especially of the face : paleness

patients in hemorrhagic shock may exhibit extreme pallor

—Scientific American Medicine