pall 1 of 2

1
as in coffin
a boxlike container for holding a dead body bearing her husband's pall were her four brothers and two nephews

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in cloud
an overspreading element that produces an atmosphere of gloom a persistent pall of distrust has overtaken this administration and will remain until the president resigns

Synonyms & Similar Words

3

pall

2 of 2

verb

Synonym Chooser

How is the word pall different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of pall are cloy, glut, gorge, sate, satiate, and surfeit. While all these words mean "to fill to repletion," pall emphasizes the loss of ability to stimulate interest or appetite.

a life of leisure eventually begins to pall

When is it sensible to use cloy instead of pall?

While the synonyms cloy and pall are close in meaning, cloy stresses the disgust or boredom resulting from such surfeiting.

sentimental pictures that cloy after a while

When might glut be a better fit than pall?

Although the words glut and pall have much in common, glut implies excess in feeding or supplying.

a market glutted with diet books

When is gorge a more appropriate choice than pall?

While in some cases nearly identical to pall, gorge suggests glutting to the point of bursting or choking.

gorged themselves with chocolate

How are the words satiate and sate related as synonyms of pall?

Both satiate and sate may sometimes imply only complete satisfaction but more often suggest repletion that has destroyed interest or desire.

years of globe-trotting had satiated their interest in travel
readers were sated with sensationalistic stories

In what contexts can surfeit take the place of pall?

The meanings of surfeit and pall largely overlap; however, surfeit implies a nauseating repletion.

surfeited themselves with junk food

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pall
Noun
The report and the subsequent reorganization cast a pall on the show, evaporating its famous party atmosphere. Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2025 That monologue really did cast a pall over the entire episode. Joe Berkowitz, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2024
Verb
If there was no Venice, does that mean that the overall attraction of an Adriatic cruise would pall? Julia Buckley, CNN, 8 May 2021 Reduced to highlights and stripped of distinction, Percy’s adventures with Furies, oracles, Medusa, Ares and Hades quickly pall. Jesse Green, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2019 See all Example Sentences for pall 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pall
Noun
  • In the end, this deception will just be another nail in the coffin of legacy media.
    Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 24 Jan. 2025
  • At one funeral in Ankara, the coffins of a family of five were lined up at the central Ahmet Hamdi Akseki mosque.
    Reuters, NBC News, 22 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • This break in the clouds can be seen all over Portland.
    Tony Perrottet, Travel + Leisure, 25 Jan. 2025
  • At a time when photos, movie tickets and messages all live in the cloud, junk journaling creates a tactile record of one’s experiences.
    Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 25 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Smith’s hair was let down in loose waves, while a long veil rested on her head.
    Gabrielle Rockson, People.com, 28 Jan. 2025
  • Doucette wore a long black dress with a black veil.
    Charles Trepany, USA TODAY, 27 Jan. 2025
Verb
  • Happiness is something fans appear to be embracing on Erika these days, with the onslaught of social media negativity subsiding in favor of praise.
    Dave Quinn, People.com, 15 Jan. 2025
  • Following last year's devastating tornadoes and storms, insurance challenges are unlikely to subside anytime soon.
    Linh Ta, Axios, 14 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Easton had his wife’s body placed in an open casket.
    Ariane Lange, Sacramento Bee, 26 Jan. 2025
  • The show struggles a bit in places to credibly evoke the relative innocence (or quiet oppression) of the 1970s and there are some moments of cluttered staging that just don’t work; as one example, a big gag involving kids hiding in a coffin kinda needs a casket to work.
    Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • The child was laid down in a room where the bodies of those killed were being wrapped in shrouds.
    Chantal Da Silva, NBC News, 13 Dec. 2024
  • How gives it the sad aspect of a shroud / … All true to nature does his art design.
    airmail.news, airmail.news, 30 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Health experts fear that a US withdrawal from the agency would significantly diminish the agency's resources and capabilities, leave the world more vulnerable to health threats, and isolate the US, hurting its own interests and leaving the country less prepared to respond to another pandemic.
    Ars Technica, Ars Technica, 21 Jan. 2025
  • The new aid package swiftly follows Donald Trump's inauguration as president of the United States once more, and U.S. support for Ukraine could diminish soon.
    Kristen Waggoner, Newsweek, 21 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • In it, a small baby lies on a tomb of red velvet, her skin and dress a rocky gray (Eguiguren Arte de Hispanomérica, D10) and eye sockets blank, an icy contrast to the fresh roses and wildflowers with which she is adorned.
    Walker Mimms, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
  • On the thirteenth-century tomb of Eleanor of Aquitaine, she is shown wide awake and reading, while her dull and kingly husband sleeps for all eternity.
    Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Pall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pall. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.

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