stale

Most comedies plummet halfway through their second act, when the jokes get stale, and studios demand some kind of emotional stakes.

From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026

But he’ll return, as a ghost, to criticize his son, who, admittedly, has grown staid and stale in his life, his marriage and his work, whatever that’s been.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

"I had no one to talk to all day -- to the point my mouth almost felt stale from not speaking. But then this little one came along and chatters with me all the time."

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

A former soldier in Ukraine said geospatial intelligence was sometimes so stale by the time it reached the units at the front line, soldiers couldn’t act on it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

The air was not so stale and sultry in the room as it was downstairs.

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers

The debate over whether pineapple belongs on pizza is staler than a three-day-old Domino’s slice.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 31, 2022

“Under the Silver Lake” is rarely uninteresting, but it smells a little staler than it should.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2019

Don’t be fooled by the fancy packaging, though: Rarely in the history of Broadway has a bigger, staler nothingburger been served up than “Pretty Woman.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2018

Some schools use the staler options as a supplement to traditional teaching, while others rely on them to entirely supplant in-person instruction.

From Slate ● May 24, 2017

Certainly there was a curious and pathetic humour about his position, for one of the features of the modern journal is that the more "up-to-date" the paper the staler the news.

From Our Stage and Its Critics By "E.F.S." of "The Westminster Gazette" by Spence, Edward Fordham

The stalest reality show becomes, in her telling, a Talmudic feat: “There is a tribunal of scholars who teaches them how to sing!” she tells Shulem breathlessly.

From The New Yorker ● Apr. 14, 2019

Luckily, so expert is Firth’s timing—like that of Emma Thompson, as Bridget’s obstetrician—that laughs, often of the rueful variety, can be conjured in the stalest scenes.

From The New Yorker ● Sep. 16, 2016

That old-as-the-Rialto story line is — bear with me — what’s new in this “Shuffle Along,” the part written by Mr. Wolfe, and it’s what feels stalest.

From New York Times ● Apr. 28, 2016

When you compete in a multiplayer shooter and you are at a disadvantage until you unlock better weapons; that's the stalest of crust.

From The Verge ● Oct. 28, 2015

“Ay, perhaps, my good Marmaduke, but I’m not in London much of the time, so London’s stalest gossip is news to me.”

From Ainslee's, Vol. 15, No. 6, July 1905 by Various

Traditionally, sourdough or challah that has staled a bit is used for French toast.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 25, 2022

As it staled, I toasted pieces under the broiler and dipped these into runny egg yolks.

From New York Times ● Feb. 7, 2022

Hers features an any-nut frangipane you can slather onto staled panettone, croissants, brioche or even white bread and top with your choice of nuts and fruit.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 20, 2021

The clerk’s disinterest practically staled the air, their voice over the speaker the droning whine of a giant, bored nose.

From Slate ● May 29, 2018

If the Preacher really had staled Mr. Leroy’s money, seemed to me like he’d try to make hisself real hard.

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis

"The inclusion of legume flours slows staling associated with gluten-free breads due to the resistant starch content of legumes," said Lowe.

From Salon ● Feb. 8, 2022

And from a wise Italian nonna, Antonietta Fazone, I learned that toasting bread, versus staling it on the counter overnight, it is preferable for preserving its flavor.

From Salon ● Nov. 6, 2021

Toasting had preserved the flavor, while staling had not.

From Salon ● Nov. 6, 2021

The retrogradation of wheat starch in bread is responsible for staling.

From New York Times ● Aug. 6, 2016

"Ah, mother! you don't understhand: he's maning that we're to be tried in the dock, for staling Anty's money."

From The Kellys and the O'Kellys by Trollope, Anthony