I. ˈstāl, esp before pause or consonant -āəl noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English stalu wood to which harpstrings are fixed; akin to Old English stela stalk, stem — more at steal
1. chiefly dialect : the stock of an implement (as a rake)
2. dialect Britain : a rung of a ladder
3. obsolete : the shaft of an arrow or spear
II. adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English; akin to Middle Dutch stel stale
1. obsolete , of malt liquor : well aged
2.
a. : altered in quality through the action of natural processes : having undergone physical changes while standing : not fresh ; especially : impaired in flavor, odor, or texture by such changes
kept the bread until it was too stale to eat
asked the nurse to empty the stale water and get her a fresh pitcher
b. : having the unpleasant odor of something that has become stale
a stale courtyard
3. : having lost a former novelty and power of pleasing : trite , commonplace
stale and worn phrases — H.D.Gideonse
news that was stale by the time it reached him
4. archaic : past the age of vigor and attractiveness suitable for marriage
5.
a. : impaired in legal force or effect by reason of laches or being allowed to rest without use, action, or demand : barred from enforcement by a statute of limitation
a stale affidavit
a stale debt
b. of a check : held an unreasonable time after issue before being presented for payment at a bank
6. : showing a marked loss of vigor, enthusiasm, and effectiveness often due to monotony
many of the old burlesque comics were going stale for want of fresh material — Henry Hewes
7.
a. : deficient in vitality usually because of age
a stale culture of bacteria
b. of land : unsuitable as range for the same kind of poultry or livestock because of long use
III. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English stalen, from stale, n.
transitive verb
1. : to make stale
a smell of previous food staled the air — Rose Thurburn
: destroy the freshness of
age cannot wither her, nor custom stale her infinite variety — Shakespeare
2. archaic : to render common : cheapen
3. : to sweat (as sheepskins) at higher temperatures
4. of an organism : to make (as a culture medium) unsuitable by its metabolic activities for the growth of another kind of organism — used chiefly as a participle or gerund
staling products of rhizoctonia
intransitive verb
: to become stale: as
a. : to undergo progressive changes in quality of crust, crumb, texture, and flavor
muffins that have staled
b. : to become wearisome, monotonous, or uninteresting
the quickly passing invention of newspaper writers, vaudeville and stage personages … will soon stale — J.P.Bishop
IV. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English; akin to Middle Low German stal urine of horses, stallen to urinate, Greek stalassein to let drop, drip and perhaps to Lithuanian įtelžti to pour in
: urine of a domestic animal (as a horse)
V. intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English stalen; akin to Middle Low German stallen to urinate
: urinate — used chiefly of camels and horses
VI. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, bird used as a decoy, from Anglo-French estale, probably modification (influenced by Old French estaler to set, place, from estal place, stand, stall, of Germanic origin) of Old English stæl- decoy; akin to Old English stæl place, stand, Old High German stellen to set, place, stand — more at stall
1. chiefly dialect : a person or thing that lures : lure , decoy
2. archaic : a person or thing used as a tool, pretext, or front for illicit or clandestine activity
3. obsolete : a butt for ridicule
4. obsolete : prostitute