Meaning

noun any of various pale or light colors

adjective lacking in body or vigor

adjective delicate and pale in color

originBorrowed from French pastel, from Italian pastello (“pastel”), from Medieval Latin pastellum (“dough, paste”), from Latin pasta (“dough, paste”), ultimately from Ancient Greek πάστη (pástē, “dough, paste”). Doublet of pastegh, pastiglia, pastila, pastilla, and pastille.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0