stale
stale — adjective
1. describes food, air, or other perishable goods that have lost their original fre
describes food, air, or other perishable goods that have lost their original freshness or good quality, usually because they were left unused for a period of time.
The bread had gone stale after sitting on the counter for three days.
go stale — common collocation for food losing freshness
The crackers had gone stale and lost their crunch, so Élise threw them out.
The air in the small meeting room felt stale and stuffy after the four-hour session.
The day-old baguettes at the bakery had lost their crispness and turned stale by evening.
- old
more general; stale specifically implies loss of freshness that makes something unpleasant
- musty
stronger smell of dampness or mould; not used for food texture
- dry
overlaps with stale for bread and cake, but dry does not carry the implication of being kept too long
- stuffy
used for air in enclosed spaces; more about lack of circulation than age
用法筆記
Commonly used with verbs go, become, and grow: go stale is the most frequent pairing.
常見錯誤
2. describes something such as a joke, news, idea, or relationship that no longer i
describes something such as a joke, news, idea, or relationship that no longer interests or excites because it has been repeated too often and feels too familiar.
Minho's presentation was full of stale jokes that the audience had heard many times before.
stale + jokes / news / ideas — common collocations for overused content
The celebrity wedding story went stale as the earthquake news took over the front page.
After six seasons the TV show had grown stale, and viewers began switching to other channels.
After years of the same weekly blog posts, Felix felt his creativity had become stale.
- trite
stronger negative connotation of being cheap or clichéd; less common in everyday speech
- clichéd
specifically about phrases, ideas, or plot devices that have been used so often they feel meaningless
- hackneyed
formal; describes writing or language that is unoriginal through overuse
- stereotyped
suggests fixed, oversimplified patterns rather than mere overuse
用法筆記
Governs a gradual process: grow stale and become stale are more natural than a sudden be stale. Distinguish from sense 1 (literal freshness) — sense 2 applies only to abstract things.
常見錯誤
3. describes a person who can no longer perform well, think creatively, or stay mot
describes a person who can no longer perform well, think creatively, or stay motivated after doing the same work or activity for too long without change or rest.
After twelve months of back-to-back deadlines, Soraya felt stale and unable to come up with fresh ideas.
feel stale — describing a person's mental state from overwork
The basketball coach noticed that several players had gone stale after the long season and needed a break.
go stale — used for athletes losing performance edge
Mauricio took a two-week holiday because he felt stale in his job and needed time away to recharge.
The pianist's concert felt stale — she had played the same programme so often that the emotion had drained away.
- burned out
more common in casual speech; emphasizes exhaustion rather than loss of creativity
- stuck in a rut
idiom; focuses on the feeling of being trapped in repetition
- uninspired
milder; can be temporary or situational
- jaded
implies cynicism or disappointment, not just tiredness from overwork
用法筆記
Subject is always a person or a group of people. Frequently used with feel, go, and get: feel stale describes the internal state, while go stale suggests a gradual decline. Often interchangeable with burned out, though stale implies loss of creativity, while burned out emphasizes exhaustion.