frequently_asked_questions_files/Oxford Thesaurus.pdf

--v. 4 risk, jeopardize, venture, put (money) on, chance,
hazard, gamble, wager, bet: I had staked my last penny on that
gold-mine.
stale adj. 1 old, past its prime, unfresh, dry, dried-out, hardened,
limp, wilted, withered, flat, sour, turned, (gone) off, mouldy,
musty, spoiled, rotten: All the food is stale because you
failed to wrap it carefully. 2 old, banal, overused,
antiquated, old-fashioned, threadbare, trite, clich‚d,
unoriginal, hackneyed, stereotyped, tired, weary, boring,
tiresome, warmed-over, shop-worn, familiar, stock, well-known,
Colloq hand-me-down, Brit reach-me-down: These comedians come
up with the same old stale jokes year after year.
stalemate n. impasse, deadlock, stand-off, standstill, (dead or full)
stop, tie; check, checkmate, mate; US Mexican stand-off: As
both parties refused to back down, the situation was a
stalemate.
stalk° v. follow, dog, haunt, shadow, trail, track (down), hunt
(down), pursue, hound, chase, Colloq tail: The leopard stalked
its prey in complete silence.
stalký n. stem, trunk, cane, main axis, leaf-stalk, shaft, spike: The
leaves cluster at the very top, leaving the entire stalk of the
plant bare.
stall° v. 1 stop, halt, die, quit, shut down, fail, cease operating,
come to a standstill, Colloq conk out: My car stalled in the
middle of rush-hour traffic - isn't that typical?
--n. 2 compartment, stand, booth, cubicle, alcove, section,
space, area, slot, enclosure, quarters; counter, table: Several
antiques dealers had hired stalls in the market. 3 shed, pen,
cote, fold, coop, sty, corral, enclosure, cowshed, barn, stable:
The animals belong in their stalls at night.
stallý v. 1 delay, dawdle, dilly-dally, dally, loiter, linger,
temporize, equivocate, hesitate, prevaricate, play for time,
waste time, stonewall, be obstructive, put (someone or
something) off; vacillate, dither, hedge, procrastinate; Brit
haver, Colloq beat about the bush, drag one's feet, give