pale 1
(pāl)n.1. A stake or pointed stick; a picket.
2. A fence enclosing an area.
3. The area enclosed by a fence or boundary.
4. a. A region or district lying within an imposed boundary or constituting a separate jurisdiction.
b. Pale The medieval dominions of the English in Ireland. Used with the.
5. Heraldry A wide vertical band in the center of an escutcheon.
tr.v. paled,
pal·ing,
pales To enclose with pales; fence in.
Idiom: beyond the pale Irrevocably unacceptable or unreasonable: behavior that was quite beyond the pale.
pale 2
(pāl)adj. pal·er,
pal·est 1. Whitish in complexion; pallid.
2. a. Of a low intensity of color; light.
b. Having high lightness and low saturation.
3. Of a low intensity of light; dim or faint: "a late afternoon sun coming through the el tracks and falling in pale oblongs on the cracked, empty sidewalks" (Jimmy Breslin).
4. Feeble; weak: a pale rendition of the aria.
v. paled, pal·ing, pales
v.tr. To cause to turn pale.
v.intr.1. To become pale; blanch: paled with fright.
2. To decrease in relative importance.
pale′ly adv.
pale′ness n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
pale
(peɪl) adj1. lacking brightness of colour; whitish: pale morning light.
2. (of a colour) whitish; produced by a relatively small quantity of colouring agent
3. dim or wan: the pale stars.
4. feeble: a pale effort.
5. South African a euphemism for
White vb6. to make or become pale or paler; blanch
7. (often foll by: before) to lose superiority or importance (in comparison to): her beauty paled before that of her hostess.
[C13: from Old French palle, from Latin pallidus pale, from pallēre to look wan]
ˈpalely adv
ˈpaleness n
pale
(peɪl) n1. a wooden post or strip used as an upright member in a fence
2. an enclosing barrier, esp a fence made of pales
3. an area enclosed by a pale
4. a sphere of activity within which certain restrictions are applied
5. (Heraldry) heraldry an ordinary consisting of a vertical stripe, usually in the centre of a shield
6. beyond the pale outside the limits of social convention
vb (tr) to enclose with pales
[C14: from Old French pal, from Latin pālus stake; compare pole1]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
pale1
(peɪl)
adj. pal•er, pal•est, adj. 1. lacking intensity of color; colorless or whitish: a pale complexion.
2. of a low degree of chroma, saturation, or purity; approaching white or gray: pale yellow.
3. not bright or brilliant; dim: the pale moon.
4. faint or feeble; weak: a pale protest.
v.i., v.t. 5. to make or become pale: to pale at the sight of blood.
[1250–1300; Middle English < Middle French < Latin
pallidus pallid]
pale′ly, adv.
pale′ness, n.
pale2
(peɪl)
n., v. paled, pal•ing. n. 1. a stake or picket, as of a fence.
2. an enclosing or confining barrier; enclosure.
3. an enclosed area.
4. limits; bounds: outside the pale of my jurisdiction.
5. a district or region within designated bounds.
6. a central vertical stripe in a heraldic escutcheon.
v.t. 7. to enclose with pales; fence.
8. to encircle or encompass.
Idioms: beyond the pale, beyond the limits of propriety, courtesy, etc.
[1300–50; Middle English (north), Old English pāl < Latin pālus stake]
pale-
var. of
paleo- before vowels:
palearctic. Also, esp. Brit.,palae-.Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.