noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   Growth process of plants grown in the absence of light, characterized by long, weak stems, fewer leaves and chlorosis. countable, uncountable
2. 2
   (botany) the act of causing a plant to develop without chlorophyll by growing it without exposure to sunlight wordnet
3. 3
   Blanching of plants, accomplished by excluding the light of the sun; the condition of a blanched plant. countable, uncountable
4. 4
   the act of weakening by stunting the growth or development of something wordnet
5. 5
   Paleness produced by absence of light, or by disease. countable, uncountable

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6. 6
   a pale and sickly appearance wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

anemiaatonyblah feelingbleachbleachingcowardice

Etymology

From French étiolé, past participle of étioler (“to blanch”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.