etiolate

American  

[ee-tee-uh-leyt] / ˈi ti əˌleɪt /

verb (used with object)

etiolated, etiolating

1. to cause (a plant) to whiten or grow pale by excluding light.

   to etiolate celery.

2. to cause to become weakened or sickly; drain of color or vigor.

---

verb (used without object)

etiolated, etiolating

1. (of plants) to whiten or grow pale through lack of light.

etiolate British  

/ ˈiːtɪəʊˌleɪt /

verb

1. botany to whiten (a green plant) through lack of sunlight

2. to become or cause to become pale and weak, as from malnutrition

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• etiolation
  noun

Etymology

Origin of etiolate

First recorded in 1785–95; < French étioler “to make pale, etiolate (plants),” probably derivative of a Norman French dialect form of standard French éteule, Old French estoble, estuble stubble; see -ate ¹

Explanation

To etiolate is to make something, especially a plant, become pale and weak. A lack of sunshine in your back yard might etiolate the roses you planted there. You can use etiolate to describe what your uncle does to his house plants when he keeps his curtains closed for weeks — causing them to grow long, pale stems and tiny leaves from lack of sunlight. It's more common to find etiolate and the noun etiolation in science textbooks or botanists' studies. Etiolate comes from the French word étioler, "to blanch," and experts speculate that it may literally mean "to become like straw," from the French Norman étule, "a straw."