pallor

noun

pal·​lor ˈpa-lər How to pronounce pallor (audio)
: 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 Even employees at the local supermarket, who had come to know Yeni over the years as a lively customer, had started worrying about her pallor. Stephania Taladrid, The New Yorker, 8 Jan. 2024 These can include: Dehydration Bloody diarrhea Abdominal cramps Fever In rare cases, some people, especially older adults and children under 5, may develop a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) which is marked by easy bruising, pallor, and decreased urine output. The Courier-Journal, 3 Jan. 2024 But to dwell upon the frequent pallor of Saturday’s sunlight required ignoring the central fact of Saturday’s weather: its warmth. Martin Weil, Washington Post, 17 Dec. 2023 Dark skin encircled the woman’s eyes, and her skin had the pallor of someone who had been sick for a long time. Lisa Sanders, M.d., New York Times, 8 Sep. 2023 The podcast also detailed how his makeup artists and hairstylists made every effort to maintain Trebek’s appearance, even when his treatments caused his pallor to change, or his hair to fall out. Dan Heching, CNN, 4 Aug. 2023 The glow of the screen cast a sickly pallor on his gaunt face, highlighting the shadows beneath his eyes. Adi Robertson, The Verge, 24 May 2023 With the dour pallor of Zack Snyder superhero movies and the bleak brutality of Lars von Trier, these kinds of stylistic attempts to modernize existing intellectual property tend to miss that what’s most current about beloved crime fiction has actually been there all along. Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 25 June 2020 It is marked by easy bruising, pallor, and decreased urine output. Mike Wehner, BGR, 21 Apr. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pallor.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of pallor was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near pallor

Cite this Entry

“Pallor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pallor. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

pallor

noun
pal·​lor ˈpal-ər How to pronounce pallor (audio)
: paleness especially of the face

Medical Definition

pallor

noun
pal·​lor ˈpal-ər How to pronounce pallor (audio)
: deficiency of color especially of the face : paleness
patients in hemorrhagic shock may exhibit extreme pallorScientific American Medicine
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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