pale: Meaning and Definition of

pale

Pronunciation: (pāl), [key]
— adj., v., pal•er, pal•est, paled, pal•ing.
—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; lacking vigor: a pale protest.
—v.i., v.t.
  1. to make or become pale: to pale at the sight of blood.

pale

Pronunciation: (pāl), [key]
— 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 his jurisdiction.
  5. a district or region within designated bounds.
  6. (cap.) Also calleda district in eastern Ireland included in the Angevin Empire of King Henry II and his successors.
  7. an ordinary in the form of a broad vertical stripe at the center of an escutcheon.
  8. a shore used inside to support the deck beams of a hull under construction.
  9. beyond the limits of propriety, courtesy, protection, safety, etc.: Their public conduct is certainly beyond the pale.
—v.t.
  1. to enclose with pales; fence.
  2. to encircle or encompass.

pale-

Pronunciation: [key]
  1. var. ofbefore most vowels: paleethnology.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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