😨 Pale from shock 🥬 Pale from no light

blanched

6.8

Pale in the face because of fear, shock, or illness

adjective
/blæntʃt/

: pálido

Her face blanched when she heard the news.

Examples

Her cheeks were blanched with fear as she answered the door.
The sudden shock left his face completely blanched.
She looked blanched when she heard the terrible news.
He looked blanched after the scary movie.
Her cheeks were blanched with fear as she answered the door.
She looked blanched when she heard the terrible news.
The sudden shock left his face completely blanched.

Synonyms

white

vsblanched

412 1.0

Hair or skin that is very pale, often from age

usually focuses on sudden paleness from shock, illness, or emotion

ashen

vsblanched

5 5.1

Pale gray in color because of shock or illness

is paleness without the specific gray tone

pallid

vsblanched

3 7.5

Having a very pale face because of illness, shock, or deep worry

is the everyday term rather than the formal medical one

bloodless

vsblanched

3 5.9

Being very pale and weak from illness or shock

refers to paleness without implying blood loss

bleached

vsblanched

1 2.5

Very pale because sunlight or chemicals removed its color

describes paleness caused by shock, fear, illness, or emotion instead

pale-faced

vsblanched

1 4.9

A person with a very pale face because of illness or fear

can apply to any part of skin, not only the face

as white as a ghost

vsblanched

Informal

1 5.0

Very pale from fear, shock, or illness

is used for simple paleness without the extreme emphasis

livid

vsblanched

1 6.5

Face and lips very pale from shock or illness

covers paleness of any skin area, not only face or lips

Antonyms

to flush

80 3.4

To become red because of heat or strong feeling

How Pale

blanched

6.8

to wan

Archaic

417 8.6

pale

291 1.0

Surface Forms

blanched positive

Morphology

blanched = blanch (transparent) = blanch + ed

The adjective is the past-participle form of the verb 'blanch' (to make pale), so the meaning 'made pale' is directly derived.

Etymology

Blanched comes from an old word meaning 'white', the same root you see in blank. So when a person's face is blanched, it has 'turned white' or very pale from shock or fear.