Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to turn pale

to turn pale

3 3.2
Become very white in the face when you feel shocked, afraid, or sick
  • phrasal verb
  • /tɜrn peɪl/
translation icon : ponerse pálido
  • London's full of young men who turn pale when she approaches.
  • face turns pale
  • skin turns pale
  • turned very pale

He also talks about disease and there we might have in mind something like anemia when people turn pale because of, of, you know, problems with the, the blood.

Examples

  • Just then, the red beard looked up and turned pale.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Then I felt my heart skip a beat, and I realized I was turning pale.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Then Mary turned pale, and she started to cry.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • First, his face turns pale and his body becomes rigid.

    Academic text (1995)

  • " He handed a sheet of paper to Roger, who read it and turned very pale."

    Fiction book (2000)

  • And you turned pale, on the verge of letting out a scream.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Even Jean turned a little pale and left without a word to start closing his tavern.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • I saw you turn pale when the Dominie spoke of those in peril at the far ends of the earth.

    Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)

  • At these words, the boy, already inclined to take fright at the sight of anyone in trousers, turned pale with fear.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • When she heard the shocking news, her face turned pale with fear.

Synonyms

to pale
vsto turn pale
41 3.7

Become very light in color, often from fear or illness

is used for becoming very light suddenly because of strong emotion or illness
to blanch
vsto turn pale
5 7.4

To become pale from sudden fear or shock

is used more generally for sudden lightening from shock fear or sickness
to blench
vsto turn pale
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To turn pale and flinch from sudden fear or shock

describes becoming very light without the added flinch or startle
to turn pasty
vsto turn pale
8.1

To become pale and look sick from shock, fear or illness

means becoming very light without the unhealthy or sickly appearance

Antonyms

to flush
80 3.4

To become red because of heat or strong feeling

How Pale

to turn pale
3 3.2
to blanch
5 7.4

Surface Forms

turn pale infinitive
turned pale past
turned pale past participle
turning pale present participle
turns pale third person singular

Morphology

turn + pale

The meaning 'to become very pale' is directly and compositionally derived from 'turn' (change into) combined with 'pale' (lose color), so a learner who knows both words can infer the MWE meaning. The 'turn + adjective' construction is a common, cross-linguistic way to express a change of state in English, making this expression transparent to a B1-level learner.

Etymology

The phrase turn pale comes from the simple image of a face losing its color: the skin turns pale when someone is very scared or sick. So, turn pale now means 'to become very pale', often from shock, fear, or illness.