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pall¹

(pôl)

1. A cover for a coffin, bier, or tomb, often made of black, purple, or white velvet.

2. A coffin, especially one being carried to a grave or tomb.

a. A covering that darkens or obscures: a pall of smoke over the city.

b. A gloomy effect or atmosphere: "A pall of depressed indifference hung over Petrograd during February and March 1916" (W. Bruce Lincoln).

4. Ecclesiastical

a. A linen cloth or a square of cardboard faced with cloth used to cover the chalice.

b. See pallium.

tr.v. palled, pall·ing, palls

To cover with or as if with a pall.

[Middle English pal, from Old English pæll, cloak, covering, from Latin pallium.]

pall²

(pôl)

v. palled, pall·ing, palls

v.intr.

1. To become insipid, boring, or wearisome.

2. To have a dulling, wearisome, or boring effect.

3. To become cloyed or satiated.

v.tr.

1. To cloy; satiate.

2. To make vapid or wearisome.

[Middle English pallen, to grow feeble, probably short for appallen; see APPALL.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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