impallidire

to turn pale, to pale

verb eem-pahl-lee-DEE-reh Rare

Usage Note

Impallidire is an intransitive verb meaning to lose color in the face — from fear, shock, or illness. It takes essere as its auxiliary: è impallidita (she turned pale). Figuratively, it also means for something to seem insignificant by comparison — ogni altro problema impallidisce di fronte a questo (every other problem pales in comparison to this).

Examples

"È impallidito quando ha sentito la notizia."

Natural Translation

He turned pale when he heard the news.

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