Synonyms
Examples of pale in a Sentence
Christina Pérez, Vogue, 25 Nov. 2023
Beat with an electric mixer on high speed until pale and thick, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.
—Ivy Odom, Southern Living, 24 Nov. 2023
Roasts enter the oven a pale cream color and emerge with a deep caramel hue.
—Lee Powell, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023
Full sun is beneficial in midwinter indoors, but full sun during summer months can make plants look pale and yellow.
—Janet B. Carson, arkansasonline.com, 20 Nov. 2023
Diana’s pale blue one-piece swimsuit was one of her most iconic.
—Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 17 Nov. 2023
Still, their strain of minimalism has some inherent warmth, mostly because of the grain of the various woods, the tactility of the few pale fabrics throughout and the way that every surface seems to absorb and capture light in a city that’s famous for being dark.
—Kurt Soller Alexis Armanet, New York Times, 7 Nov. 2023
Medium brown hardwood floors neatly contrast against the pale decor, a neutral palette filled mostly with whites and some pops of light gray.
—James McClain, Robb Report, 15 Nov. 2023
The pozole at Moctezuma, served in a pale green broth thickened with pumpkin seeds and herbs, is an impeccable rendition of the classic pork-and-hominy stew as it’s typically prepared in the western state of Guerrero.
—Jorge Valencia Mariano Fernandez, New York Times, 14 Nov. 2023
Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2023
Pretty quickly, Elizabeth recognizes her protest statement in Episode 6 –– wearing pants on live television –– pales in comparison to what Harriet is organizing for the sake of the neighborhood.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 11 Nov. 2023
The famous climactic opening pales without a hall’s resonance to capture its overpowering majesty.
—Christian Hertzog, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Nov. 2023
In many ways, this season’s squad pales in comparison to the de facto super teams of campaigns past; facing more questions about its pitching staff, lineup depth and championship credentials than is typical for the franchise this time of year.
—Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2023
But its name recognition with the general public pales compared to ESPN’s.
—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 9 Aug. 2023
His career as a conductor, however, pales compared with his teaching.
—Joshua Barone, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2023
But the $1,900 in damages that KDFW sought from the Kentucky hunter pale in comparison to the federal charges that Paschall, Seymore, and LeMaster now face in South Carolina.
—Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 31 Aug. 2023
All of that pales beside the Crow-Thomas revelations.
—Todd J. Gillman, Dallas News, 13 July 2023
Skyler Caruso, Peoplemag, 11 Nov. 2023
The best Bing has been able to do is power Yahoo searches and get the data that comes with them, but that pales in comparison to Google’s mobile traffic.
—David Pierce, The Verge, 11 Oct. 2023
This pales in comparison to the average of 226 concussions per year since 2015.
—James M. Smoliga, Dvm, Ars Technica, 10 Nov. 2023
Yet, their grievances pale in compression to Covey’s evocative experiences.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 27 Oct. 2023
Yet the actual viewership almost pales next to the volume of media coverage the nostalgic sci-fi show generates, offering the bonus of helping to keep Netflix top of mind even among those who don’t watch it.
—Brian Lowry, CNN, 7 Aug. 2023
But many were starting to pale, and some showed signs of rapid tissue loss.
—Jenny Jarvie, Los Angeles Times, 1 Aug. 2023
That number pales in comparison with other countries’ payments, however, and is barely enough to cover the average monthly rent for a Hong Kong apartment.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2023
Lilies and hostas, their leaves already paled and half rotted by the cold autumn rain, remained recognizable.
—Yiyun Li, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023
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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
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
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
Phrases Containing pale
Articles Related to pale
Dictionary Entries Near pale
Cite this Entry
“Pale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pale. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
pale
2 of 3 verbpale
3 of 3 nounAdjective
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
More from Merriam-Webster on pale
Nglish: Translation of pale for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of pale for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pale
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