Sallow vs Ruddy - What's the difference?

As adjectives the difference between sallow and ruddy

is that sallow is Yellowish skin colour.ruddy is reddish in color, especially of the face, fire, or sky.

As nouns the difference between sallow and ruddy

is that sallow is a European willow, Salix caprea, that has broad leaves, large catkins and tough wood while ruddy is ruddy duck.

As a verb ruddy is

to make reddish in colour.

sallow

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) salowe, from (etyl) salu, from (etyl) ).

Adjective

(er)

(lb) Yellowish skin colour.

# Of a sickly pale colour.

#*:Then his sallow face brightened, for the hall had been carefully furnished, and was very clean. ¶ There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.

#(lb) Of a tan colour, associated with people from southern Europe or East Asia.

#*2007 , David McWilliams, " We must begin the culture debate", 23 December:

#*:The girls are mostly Slavic-pretty, long-limbed with high cheekbones, sallow skin and green eyes. They are the closest thing to supermodels that Mulhuddart has ever seen.

#*2012 , Aisling, " Am I pink or yellow? How to choose the right foundation tone. And what is the deal with Mac foundations?" beaut.ie (17 January):

#*:A yellow undertone is often found on people with sallow skin – e.g. Asian.

#*2012 , Billy Keane, " I feel so much for Mickey. Maybe there is peace for him in sport", Irish Independent (13 June):

#*:She had such lovely sallow skin, the handsome high cheekbones of the north with the brown conker-colour eyes and the dark silken hair.

Dirty; murky.

Etymology 2

From (etyl) salwe, from (etyl) sealh, from (etyl) (compare Welsh helyg, Latin salix), probably originally a borrowing from some other language.

Noun

(wikipedia sallow) (en noun)

A European willow, Salix caprea , that has broad leaves, large catkins and tough wood.

*1819 , Keats, :

*:Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn

*:Among the river sallows , borne aloft

*:Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;

Willow twigs.

* (and other bibliographic details) Fawkes

Bend the pliant sallow to a shield.

* (and other bibliographic details) Emerson

The sallow knows the basketmaker's thumb.

Derived terms

* ) * sallow flute

Anagrams

ruddy

English

Adjective

(er)

Reddish in color, especially of the face, fire, or sky.

(British, slang) A mild intensifier.

Synonyms

* (reddish in color) rosy * (intensifier) bally, bleeding, blimming, bloody, blooming * See also

Noun

(ruddies)

(informal) ruddy duck

* {{quote-news, year=2007, date=November 4, author=Deborah Baldwin, title=Close to Nature, and the Airport, work=New York Times citation

, passage=In winter, snow geese land at West Pond, a Robert Moses legacy that ought to be called Duck Soup: at this time of year look for ruddies , greater scaups, Northern pintails, American widgeons and gadwalls. }}

Verb

To make reddish in colour.

The sunset ruddied our faces.

(Sir Walter Scott)

English intensifiers