[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/stale/)

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# stale

adjective (stale, staler, stalest)

«stale» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. Stale food, especially bread or cake, is old, dry and not fresh any more. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#m1)
2. Stale air is old and stuffy, not fresh, like in a room with closed windows. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#m2)
3. Stale news or jokes are old and boring because people have heard them too many times. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#m3)
4. In hunting, a stale trail is an old scent that has grown weak and is hard to follow. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#m4)

### In the lessons

In everyday life, bread goes stale if it is left out; crisps go stale in an open bag. In science, bread goes stale because it loses water; fresh air helps us concentrate. Phrases: «go stale», «stale bread», «stale air».

### Examples

- The bread went stale because we left the bag open. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x1)
- Let's open a window; the air in here is stale. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x2)
- We fed the stale crusts to the ducks. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x3)
- Seal the cereal box, or it will go stale. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x4)
- That joke is stale; everyone knows it. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x5)
- Stale biscuits are soft instead of crunchy. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x6)
- The room smelled stale after the holiday. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x7)
- He shall follow the new trail, and the stale trail, and the mixed trail, with a clear eye! [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/#x8)

### Note

Adjective: stale, staler, stalest. Stale is not the same as mouldy or rotten: stale food is old and dry but may still be safe; mouldy food is not safe to eat. Opposite: «fresh». Feeding lots of bread to ducks is not good for them.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «stale» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stale/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«stale» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/stale.html) on Mova free.