as in pallid
lacking a healthy skin color
she looks a little wan after all that tiring work
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wan
Evans managed both to placate the money men at Gulf & Western, who wanted to sell Paramount because of its wan revenue, and become a peer of Hollywood's rambunctious talent.
—
cleveland, 28 Oct. 2019
Our family just discovered Gobi Manchurian, and for anyone who considers cauliflower a wan version of broccoli, try this and banish thoughts of soggy vegetables from your mind.
—BostonGlobe.com, 30 Mar. 2018
The beautiful young actress turns into a wan woman in a bandana and mismatched clothes.
—Deborah Young, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Sep. 2019
In spite of the lovingly detailed suburban ambience, interiors, gardens and clothes, the atmosphere feels torqued beyond time and history into a fairy tale theater of desire and wan hope.
—Marina Warner, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2018
See All Example Sentences for wan
cleveland, 28 Oct. 2019
Our family just discovered Gobi Manchurian, and for anyone who considers cauliflower a wan version of broccoli, try this and banish thoughts of soggy vegetables from your mind.
—BostonGlobe.com, 30 Mar. 2018
The beautiful young actress turns into a wan woman in a bandana and mismatched clothes.
—Deborah Young, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Sep. 2019
In spite of the lovingly detailed suburban ambience, interiors, gardens and clothes, the atmosphere feels torqued beyond time and history into a fairy tale theater of desire and wan hope.
—Marina Warner, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2018
See All Example Sentences for wan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wan
Adjective
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Similar prompts yielded images of a skull with glowing eyes hovering above an ornate cross, and another pallid, blank-eyed woman — this one hooded, with a halo of fire, crying blood.—
Miles Klee,
Rolling Stone,
22 June 2025
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My skin was pallid, and lesions covered the inside of my mouth.—
Suleika Jaouad,
New York Times,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Symptoms of heat exhaustion may include heavy sweating and fatigue, a weak pulse and skin that’s cool, pale or clammy, as well as headache, dizziness, nausea and fainting.—
Stephen Underwood,
Hartford Courant,
30 June 2025
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The wine is a pale straw with greenish highlights, featuring aromas of green apple, lemon, and spring flowers.—
Joseph V Micallef,
Forbes.com,
28 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wan. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.
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