ashy

adjective

ˈa-shē 

ashier; ashiest

1

: covered with or containing ashes

ashy smoke

ashy residue

ashy soil

the ashy remains of the burned building

… the forest opened up into a giant burn scar, with the blackened skeletons of trees stretching down an ashy hillside.

—Morgan McFall-Johnsen

2

a

: suggestive of or resembling ashes (as in color)

ashy grays

an ashy smell/taste

She wore her hair down in long ashy blonde waves that reached her hips.

—Alyssa K. Davis

especially : very pale (as from fright or illness) : ashen

Symptoms that clinicians should advise their patients to look out for include slowed breathing and skin turning ashy or blue.

—Maya Yang

b

African American English : of or relating to the grayish or whitish appearance of very dry skin

—used especially to describe this condition in people with a skin pigmentation that is darker than what is typically considered white (see white entry 1 sense 2a)

Ashy skin is caused by a lack of moisture, which leaves your skin dehydrated. It can appear on essentially any part of your skin. It's also common for the skin on your arms, legs, and face to become dehydrated and ashy.

—Eleesha Lockett

Vaseline has long been a staple in Black medicine cabinets, healing everything from chapped lips to ashy elbows.

—Angela Johnson

Excessively cleaning my hands could result in dry, cracked skin, but I've been able to prevent them from becoming chapped and ashy with my arsenal of moisturizing hand creams and balms.

—Jennifer Ford

Synonyms of ashy

• pallid
• pale
• ashen
• paled

Examples of ashy in a Sentence

paramedics knew she was in shock because she was ashy and shaking

Recent Examples on the Web

Before the rookie makeovers, Courtni Shea had never colored her hair, which was originally an ashy brown color. — Julie Tremaine, PEOPLE, 20 June 2026

Created with melanin-rich skin in mind, the sheer, moisturizing formula blends seamlessly into skin, leaving behind a healthy glow instead of an ashy residue. — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 19 June 2026

Chazan and his team also found ashy white bones that appeared to have been exposed to high heat, as well as what looked like charred black and brown bones. — Sahas Mehra, Scientific American, 19 June 2026

The mom-of-six styled her ashy blonde hair in an effortless blowout, showing off her darker brown roots. — Lara Walsh, InStyle, 7 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ashy

• flashy
• trashy

Kids Definition

ashy

adjective

ˈash-ē 

ashier; ashiest

1

: of, relating to, or resembling ashes

2

: ashen sense 2