What does the cryptic crossword clue "Vessel drained, did you say? (4)" mean?

The definition is "Vessel". The wordplay uses a homophone (sounds like). sounds like (“did you say”) ‘pale’=”drained” of colour The answer is PAIL.

Vessel drained, did you say? (4)

Guardian Cryptic #29300 | 27 Across | 2024-02-08 flower