- blanch (1)
- "to make white, turn pale," late 14c., from O.Fr. blanchir "to whiten, wash," from blanc "white" (11c.; see blank). Originally "to remove the hull of (almonds, etc.) by soaking." Intransitive sense of "to turn white" is from 1768.
- blanch (2)
- "to start back, turn aside," 1570s, variant of blench (q.v.).