Ashier

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Showing a paler or more grayish complexion than usual; having a surface covered with powdery residue from burnt material; appearing faint or sickly due to shock or fear
2. Exhibiting an unusually light, grayish skin tone often associated with distress; characterized by a coating of fine soot or charcoal remains; conveying a sense of weakness or unease through altered coloration
3. Describing a complexion that lacks color and looks ghostly or pale; relating to the fine, powder-like remains left from combustion on a surface; suggesting a state of health affected by worry or illness through a change in skin hue

Etymology: "Ashier" is the comparative of "ashy," so it means paler, greyer, or more powdery than something else. "Ashy" itself is the older word, and its root is the ordinary noun "ash," the grey residue left when something burns. Old English "æsce" gave Middle English "asche," and "ash" took on its modern sense of burnt remains that way. The "-y" ending is an old and productive English suffix, meaning "having the quality of" or "full of," as in "stony" or "sandy." Middle English "aschy" and "asshy" simply meant "like ash" or "covered with ash," so the adjective started as a literal description of a sooty, powdery surface. The sense of a grey or sickly complexion grew out of that comparison: a face drained of colour looks like cold ash.

Synonyms: paler, grayer, whiter, ghostlier, waner

Antonyms: darker, ruddier, rosier, healthier, flusher