English
Etymology
The phrase within the pale, meaning to stay within the limits of law or decency, was in use by the mid-17th century. The phrase is a reference to the general sense of boundary, not to any of the particular places, such as the English pale#Noun|pale in Ireland, which bore that name. Out of the many districts established by England (Cork, Dublin, Drogheda, Waterford, and Wexford), only a select few followed the laws established by England, hence "within the pale" and beyond the pale.
Idiom
within the pale
- Within the boundary|boundaries, either physical or metaphorical; especially within the limits of acceptable behavior.
#*2006 July 20, Matthew Parris, "Two reasons why I cannot bring myself to write about the Israel problem",Times Online
#*: That settlement has to be a return to her pre-1967 boundaries. Precisely because Israel is by no means forced to make so generous a move, the international support (even love) this would generate would secure her future permanently. It would bring her back within the pale.
References
Brewer�s Dictionary of Phrases and Fable, by John Freeman. Harper & Row Publishers, New York
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