mealy
Like stale apples
Mealy describes a dry, grainy, or powdery texture—the opposite of crisp or juicy.
A mealy apple has gone soft and unpleasant.
Mealy potatoes crumble rather than hold together.
The word extends to appearance: a mealy complexion looks pale and unhealthy.
Mealy-mouthed means evasive or unwilling to speak plainly: Don't be mealy-mouthed about it—just say what you mean.
Covered with grain dust
- starchyContaining complex carbohydrates
- granularMade of tiny particles
- crumblyProne to fragmenting
- softYielding to touch
dry · powdery · mushy · pasty · grainy · coarse · pulpy · friable
Covered with grain dust
- dryFree from moisture
- crumblyProne to fragmenting
- fluffySoft and light-textured
- starchyContaining complex carbohydrates
baked · russet · mashed · overcooked · grainy · powdery · disintegrating · soft
Past optimal freshness
mushy · bland · disappointing · spoiled · pithy · spongy · bruised · deteriorated
Lacking color intensity
- pastyUnhealthily pale
- sallowUnhealthily yellowish complexion
- wanPale and unwell-looking
- pallidUnhealthily lacking color
unhealthy · washed-out · ashen · sickly · colorless · dull · anemic · chalky
Harmful creature or nag
- infestationPest takeover situation
- scaleMeasure of relative size
- whiteflySap-drinking plant pest
- houseplantIndoor ornamental greenery
succulent · waxy · cottony · aphid · colony · sap-sucking · ornamental · greenhouse
Avoiding direct response
- insincereFeigning belief or feeling
- indirectNot straight or immediate
- vagueUnclear, ill-defined
- noncommittalNot expressing clear opinion
equivocating · hypocritical · sycophantic · dishonest · weaselly · obsequious · unctuous · slippery
floury
Covered with grain dust
soft · dry · powdery · mushy · pasty · grainy · coarse · pulpy · friable · overripe
floury
Covered with grain dust
starchy · baked · russet · mashed · overcooked · grainy · powdery · disintegrating · soft · flaky
overripe
Past optimal freshness
cottony · mushy · bland · disappointing · spoiled · pithy · spongy · bruised · deteriorated · flavorless
pale
Lacking color intensity
pallid · unhealthy · washed-out · ashen · sickly · colorless · dull · anemic · chalky · bloodless
pest
Harmful creature or nag
- infestationPest takeover situation
- scaleMeasure of relative size
- whiteflySap-drinking plant pest
houseplant · succulent · waxy · cottony · aphid · colony · sap-sucking · ornamental · greenhouse · crawlers
evasive
Avoiding direct response
noncommittal · equivocating · hypocritical · sycophantic · dishonest · weaselly · obsequious · unctuous · slippery · glib
- Produce Qualitiesfreshness, ripeness, firmness, juiciness, sweetness
- texturessmoothness, smooth, soft, rough, roughness
- Grain Adjectivesgrainy, granular, wheaty, starchy, floury
- cooking flawsburned, overcooked, undercooked, scorched, raw
- spoiledrotten, rotted, rotting, spoiled, spoiling
- horse markingsblaze, snip, star, stripe, stocking
mealyforthright
Directly honest in manner
direct · frank · candid · straightforward · blunt
- meal ticketsSources of financial support
- hot mealFreshly prepared warm food
- last mealPre-execution food tradition
- free mealUnpaid-for food
- holiday mealSpecial occasion dinner
- light mealSmall portion of food
meal, meals, oatmeal, cornmeal, mealworm, mealiness, mealiest, mealybug, mealier