STALE

stale

(adjective) lacking freshness, palatability, or showing deterioration from age; “stale bread”; “the beer was stale”

cold, stale, dusty, moth-eaten

(adjective) lacking originality or spontaneity; no longer new; “moth-eaten theories about race”; “stale news”

stale

(verb) urinate, of cattle and horses

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology 1

Adjective

stale (comparative staler, superlative stalest)

(alcohol, obsolete) Clear, free of dregs and lees; old and strong.

No longer fresh, in reference to food, urine, straw, wounds, etc.

No longer fresh, new, or interesting, in reference to ideas and immaterial things; cliche, hackneyed, dated.

No longer nubile or suitable for marriage, in reference to people; past one's prime.

(agriculture, obsolete) Fallow, in reference to land.

(legal) Unreasonably long in coming, in reference to claims and actions.

Taking a long time to change

Worn out, particularly due to age or over-exertion, in reference to athletes and animals in competition.

(finance) Out of date, unpaid for an unreasonable amount of time, particularly in reference to checks.

(computing) Of data: out of date; not synchronized with the newest copy.

Usage notes

In the third sense regarding food, usually (but not always) pejorative and synonymous with gone bad and turned. In reference to mead, wine, and bread, it can describe an acceptable or desired state (see: crouton). In modern English, however, "stale beer" has been light struck, flat, or oxidized and is to be avoided.

Synonyms

• see also hackneyed

Antonyms

• fresh

Noun

stale (plural stales)

(colloquial) Something stale; a loaf of bread or the like that is no longer fresh.

Verb

stale (third-person singular simple present stales, present participle staling, simple past and past participle staled)

(of alcohol, obsolete, transitive) To make stale; to age in order to clear and strengthen (a drink, especially beer).

(transitive) To make stale; to cause to go out of fashion or currency; to diminish the novelty or interest of, particularly by excessive exposure or consumption.

(intransitive) To become stale; to grow odious from excessive exposure or consumption.

(alcohol, intransitive) To become stale; to grow unpleasant from age.

Etymology 2

Noun

stale (plural stales)

A long, thin handle (of rakes, axes, etc.)

(dialectal) The posts and rungs composing a ladder.

(botany, obsolete) The stem of a plant.

The shaft of an arrow, spear, etc.

Synonyms

• handle (grip of tools, generally)

• haft (grip of tools, generally, and especially of axes)

• helve (grip of tools, generally)

• shaft (body of arrows, spears, etc.)

• snath, the shaft of a scythe

• stem (plants)

Verb

stale (third-person singular simple present stales, present participle staling, simple past and past participle staled)

(transitive, obsolete) To make a ladder by joining rungs ("stales") between the posts.

Etymology 3

Noun

stale (plural stales)

(military, obsolete) A fixed position, particularly a soldier's in a battle-line.

(chess, uncommon) A stalemate; a stalemated game.

(military, obsolete) An ambush.

(obsolete) A band of armed men or hunters.

(Scottish, military, obsolete) The main force of an army.

Adjective

stale (not comparable)

(chess, obsolete) At a standstill; stalemated.

Verb

stale (third-person singular simple present stales, present participle staling, simple past and past participle staled)

(chess, uncommon, transitive) To stalemate.

(chess, obsolete, intransitive) To be stalemated.

Etymology 4

Noun

stale (uncountable)

(livestock, obsolete) Urine, especially used of horses and cattle.

Hypernyms

• See urine

Verb

stale (third-person singular simple present stales, present participle staling, simple past and past participle staled)

(livestock, obsolete, intransitive) To urinate, especially used of horses and cattle.

Usage notes

Occasionally transitive, when in reference to horses or men pissing blood.

Hypernyms

• See urinate

Etymology 5

Noun

stale (plural stales)

(falconry, hunting, obsolete) A live bird to lure birds of prey or others of its kind into a trap.

(obsolete) Any lure, particularly in reference to people used as live bait.

(crime, obsolete) An accomplice of a thief or criminal acting as bait.

(obsolete) a partner whose beloved abandons or torments him in favor of another.

(obsolete) A patsy, a pawn, someone used under some false pretext to forward another's (usu. sinister) designs; a stalking horse.

(crime, obsolete) A prostitute of the lowest sort; any wanton woman.

(hunting, obsolete) Any decoy, either stuffed or manufactured.

Verb

stale (third-person singular simple present stales, present participle staling, simple past and past participle staled)

(rare, obsolete, transitive) To serve as a decoy, to lure.

Anagrams

• Astle, ETLAs, Slate, Teals, Tesla, astel, laste, lates, least, leats, salet, setal, slate, steal, stela, taels, tales, teals, telas, tesla

Source: Wiktionary

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Stale, n. Etym: [OE. stale, stele, AS. stæl, stel; akin to LG. & D. steel, G. stiel; cf. L. stilus stake, stalk, stem, Gr. stall, stalk, n.]

Definition: The stock or handle of anything; as, the stale of a rake. [Written also steal, stele, etc.] But seeling the arrow's stale without, and that the head did go No further than it might be seen. Chapman.

Stale, a. Etym: [Akin to stale urine, and to stall, n.; probably from Low German or Scandinavian. Cf. Stale, v. i.]

1. Vapid or tasteless from age; having lost its life, spirit, and flavor, from being long kept; as, stale beer.

2. Not new; not freshly made; as, stele bread.

3. Having lost the life or graces of youth; worn out; decayed. "A stale virgin." Spectator.

4. Worn out by use or familiarity; having lost its novelty and power of pleasing; trite; common. Swift. Wit itself, if stale is less pleasing. Grew. How weary, stale flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world! Shak. Stale affidavit (Law), an affidavit held above a year. Craig.

– Stale demand (Law), a claim or demand which has not been pressed or demanded for a long time.

Stale, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Staled; p. pr. & vb. n. Staling.]

Definition: To make vapid or tasteless; to destroy the life, beauty, or use of; to wear out. Age can not wither her, nor custom stale Her infinite variety. Shak.

Stale, v. i. Etym: [Akin to D. & G. stallen, Dan. stalle, Sw. stalla, and E. stall a stable. Stall, n., and cf. Stale, a.]

Definition: To make water; to discharge urine; -- said especially of horses and cattle. Hudibras.

Stale, n. Etym: [See Stale, a. & v. i.]

1. That which is stale or worn out by long keeping, or by use. [Obs.]

2. A prostitute. [Obs.] Shak.

3. Urine, esp. that of beasts. "Stale of horses." Shak.

Stale, n. Etym: [Cf. OF. estal place, position, abode, market, F. étal a butcher's stall, OHG. stal station, place, stable, G. stall (see Stall, n.); or from OE. stale theft, AS. stalu (see Steal, v. t.)]

1. Something set, or offered to view, as an allurement to draw others to any place or purpose; a decoy; a stool pigeon. [Obs.] Still, as he went, he crafty stales did lay. Spenser.

2. A stalking-horse. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

3. (Chess)

Definition: A stalemate. [Obs.] Bacon.

4. A laughingstock; a dupe. [Obs.] Shak.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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