ashen.

1. Of a gray color like the residue left after a fire.

2. Unusually pale in the face, especially from shock, illness, or fear.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• ashen light
• ashen sky
• ashen face
• turn ashen
• ashen dust
• ashen with fear

On the page

The ashen light flattened the rooftops before dawn.

His face turned ashen when the missing child’s name was read aloud.

Usage notes

The color sense is literal; the common face sense means extremely pale. It can imply fear or shock through context. Sense 2: Figurative “ashen” describes a face drained of color; it often signals shock or fear but does not prove a specific emotion.