Palls

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. To become less appealing or enjoyable over time
2. To lose strength, effectiveness, or interest as a result of repetition or familiarity
3. To bring about a sense of weariness or dissatisfaction due to excessive exposure or use

Etymology: The verb "palls" is the third-person singular of "pall", and its sense of growing tiresome comes from a surprisingly tangled set of roots. The most likely source is the Middle English verb "pallen", meaning to weaken, fade or lose spirit. That verb was shortened from "apallen", which came from Old French "apalir", "to grow pale", ultimately from Latin "palleo", "to be pale". A second strand, the one that gave the word its figurative sense, may have crossed over from "appal". Early English "appal" once meant to make pale or to lose flavour, and was cut down to "pall" under the influence of the unrelated noun "pall", a cloth covering. Wine and food that had gone stale were said to have palled, which is why the sense of losing appeal still fits. The noun "pall", the heavy cloth draped over a coffin, comes from Old English "pæll", borrowed through Old French from Latin "pallium", a cloak. Its link to the verb is uncertain, so the two may simply have merged in use.

Synonyms: shrouds, covers, drapes