SKIP TO CONTENT

pale

/peɪl/

/peɪl/

Other forms: paler; paled; pales; palest; paly

After a long summer in the pool and the bright sun, your favorite rainbow-colored beach swimsuit will probably end up pale and faded. Pale means "having little color."

When something's light colored, you can describe it as pale, like a pale light shining in the kitchen at night, or a person's pale face when they're suffering from the flu. Pale is also a verb that means "to become pale," so you could say that you saw your friend's face pale at the news that her favorite bakery had gone out of business. Don't make the mistake of confusing pale with its homophone, pail, which means "bucket."

Definitions of pale
  1. adjective
    very light colored; highly diluted with white
    pale seagreen”
    pale blue eyes”
    Synonyms:
    light, light-colored
    (used of color) having a relatively small amount of coloring agent
  2. adjective
    abnormally deficient in color as suggesting physical or emotional distress
    synonyms: mealy, pallid, wan
    colorless, colourless
    weak in color; not colorful
  3. adjective
    (of light) lacking in intensity or brightness; dim or feeble
    “the pale light of a half moon”
    “a pale sun”
    “the late afternoon light coming through the el tracks fell in pale oblongs on the street”
    “the pale (or wan) stars”
    synonyms: pallid, sick, wan
    weak
    wanting in physical strength
  4. adjective
    lacking in vitality or interest or effectiveness
    “a pale rendition of the aria”
    pale prose with the faint sweetness of lavender”
    synonyms: pallid
    colorless, colourless
    lacking in variety and interest
  5. adjective
    not full or rich
    “high, pale, pure and lovely song”
    Synonyms:
    thin
    (of sound) lacking resonance or volume
  6. verb
    turn pale, as if in fear
    synonyms: blanch, blench
    see moresee less
    type of:
    color, colour, discolor, discolour
    change color, often in an undesired manner
  7. noun
    a wooden strip forming part of a fence
    synonyms: picket
    see moresee less
    type of:
    strip
    thin piece of wood or metal
  8. noun
    a bounded scope
    synonyms: confines
    see moresee less
    type of:
    ambit, compass, orbit, range, reach, scope
    an area in which something acts or operates or has power or control: "the range of a supersonic jet"
Pronunciation
US

/peɪl/

UK

/peɪl/

DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘pale'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family
EDITOR'S CHOICE

Look up pale for the last time

Close your vocabulary gaps with personalized learning that focuses on teaching the words you need to know.

VocabTrainer - Vocabulary.com's Vocabulary Trainer