vaalea

Vaalea is a Finnish adjective meaning light-colored or pale. It is used for describing hair color (vaalea tukka, vaaleat hiukset), skin tone (vaalea iho), and other light hues such as fabrics or paint. In color terminology it is often translated as "blond" or "fair" depending on the noun, and it is commonly contrasted with tumma, meaning dark. The word is widely used in everyday Finnish and in media.

Grammar and inflection: Vaalea declines like other adjectives in Finnish. The base form is vaalea; other forms include vaalean (genitive singular), vaaleaa (partitive singular), vaaleat (nominative plural), and vaaleita (partitive plural). Compound forms such as vaaleanvärinen ("light-colored") and vaaleansävyinen ("in a light shade") are common. When describing a color with a noun, agreement in number and case is observed (vaalea tukka, vaaleat hiukset). Adjectival phrases can also function as predicates, as in "Hiukset ovat vaaleat" (The hair is light).

Etymology and related terms: Vaalea derives from the Finnish root meaning light or brightness; related terms include vaaleus (lightness or pallor) and several color compounds such as vaaleanharmaa (pale gray) and vaalea väri ("light color"). In everyday usage, vaalea conveys a visual sense of brightness and often ranges from pale blond tones to light pastel hues, with context guiding whether it implies hair color, skin tone, or general color impression.