Terribly stale stories (5)

I believe the answer is:

tales

'stories' is the definition.
('tale' can be a synonym of 'story')

'terribly stale' is the wordplay.
'terribly' indicates an anagram.
'stale' is an anagram of 'TALES'.

(Other definitions for tales that I've seen before include "Relations" , "They might be tall" , "accounts" , "Lies" , "Stories, fables" .)

I've seen this clue in The Mirror.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.