Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

beyond the pale

/biˌ(j)ɑnd ðə ˈpeɪl/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.03 in modern English

Syllables: be-yond the pale
IPA: /biˌ(j)ɑnd ðə ˈpeɪl/

24

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

2

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

prep_phrase

Of a person or their behaviour: outside the bounds of what is acceptable, or regarded as good judgment, morality, ethics, etc.

prep_phrase

Used other than as an idiom; generally followed by of: beyond the extent or limits.

Example Sentences

"The very date which put them beyond the pale as belligerents was that which they seem to have chosen in order to prove what active and valiant soldiers they still remained."
"Socially Mack and the boys were beyond the pale. Sam Malloy didn't speak to them as they went by the boiler. They drew into themselves and no one could foresee how they would come out of the cloud. For there are two possible reactions to social ostracism - either a man emerges determined to be better, purer, and kindlier or he goes bad, challenges the world and does even worse things. This last is by far the commonest reaction to stigma."
"1951, William O. Douglas, quoted in 2013, Whitney Strub, Perversion for Profit: The Politics of Pornography and the Rise of the New Right, page 43, “The teaching of methods of terror and other seditious conduct should be beyond the pale,” he continued, adding as an afterthought, “along with obscenity and immorality.”"
"For most British voters – the people whom Labour claimed to represent – Labour was, quite simply, ‘beyond the pale’."
"Are they to be placed like devils beyond the pale of all human charities, and to be denied all kindly and benevolent offices?"
"[…]but he was essentially a lone traveller in areas beyond the pale of human society."

Etymology

From beyond + the + pale (“wooden stake, picket; fence made from wooden stakes, palisade; limit, boundary”). The phrase is often connected either to the Pale of Settlement, the part of the Russian Empire where Jews were permitted to settle, or to the English Pale, the part of Ireland that was directly subject to the English Crown in the Late Middle Ages. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, however, there is no evidence for either of these theories. The phrase is first attested in 1720, after the English Pale had ceased to exist and before the Pale of Settlement had been established.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /biˌ(j)ɑnd ðə ˈpeɪl/
British English: /bɪˌjɒnd ðə ˈpeɪl/

Frequently Paired Words

over the edge

Synonyms

out of bounds off-limits off the reservation over the line

Antonyms

within the pale

Rhymes With

scale mail they'll email jail fail detail retail trail rail side rail tail

Questions

How do you pronounce beyond the pale?: The recorded pronunciation is /biˌ(j)ɑnd ðə ˈpeɪl/.
What does beyond the pale mean?: Of a person or their behaviour: outside the bounds of what is acceptable, or regarded as good judgment, morality, ethics, etc.
Where does beyond the pale come from?: From beyond + the + pale (“wooden stake, picket; fence made from wooden stakes, palisade; limit, boundary”). The phrase is often connected either to the Pale of Settlement, the part of the Russian Empire where Jews were permitted to settle, or to the English Pale, the part of Ireland that was directly subject to the English Crown in the Late Middle Ages. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, however, there is no evidence for either of these theories. The phrase is first attested in 1720, after the English Pale had ceased to exist and before the Pale of Settlement had been established.

How to pronounce beyond the pale

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