Stale
/steɪl/noun
No longer fresh, lively, or new; also, worn from overuse.
Did you know?In older English, stale could mean “worn out by use” or even “experienced” in a way that survives in the phrase “stale joke,” showing how physical decay became a metaphor for social exhaustion.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*stalaz
“standing place; position; a place where something remains”
Old English
OE
stæl
“a standing place, position; later used in senses of place or station”
Middle English
ME
stal(e)
“old, no longer fresh; worn from use or time”
16th Century
English
stale
“worn out, no longer fresh, or trite through overuse”
Modern English
English
stale
“no longer fresh or lively; insipid or overused”