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At stake

 - 6 dictionary results

stake

2  [steyk] ,noun, verb, staked, stak⋅ing.
Use At stake in a Sentence
–noun
1. something that is wagered in a game, race, or contest.
2. a monetary or commercial interest, investment, share, or involvement in something, as in hope of gain: I have a big stake in the success of the firm.
3. a personal or emotional concern, interest, involvement, or share: Parents have a big stake in their children's happiness.
4. the funds with which a gambler operates.
5. Often, stakes. a prize, reward, increase in status, etc., in or as if in a contest.
6. stakes. Poker. the cash values assigned to the various colored chips, various bets, and raises: Our stakes are 5, 10, and 25 cents: you can bet out 10 cents on a pair and reraise twice at 25 cents.
7. a grubstake.
–verb (used with object)
8. to risk (something), as upon the result of a game or the occurrence or outcome of any uncertain event, venture, etc.: He staked his reputation on the success of the invention.
9. to furnish (someone) with necessaries or resources, esp. money: They staked me to a good meal and a train ticket.
—Idiom
10. at stake, in danger of being lost, as something that has been wagered; critically involved.
Origin:
1520–30; orig. uncert.

Synonyms:
1. wager, bet. 5. winnings, purse. 8. bet, gamble, hazard; jeopardize.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To At stake
stake   (stāk)   
n.  

  1. A piece of wood or metal pointed at one end for driving into the ground as a marker, fence pole, or tent peg.

    1. A vertical post to which an offender is bound for execution by burning.

    2. Execution by burning. Used with the: condemned to the stake.

    3. Money or property risked in a wager or gambling game. Often used in the plural. See Synonyms at bet.

    4. The prize awarded the winner of a contest or race.

    5. A race offering a prize to the winner, especially a horserace in which the prize consists of money contributed equally by the horse owners.

    6. A share or an interest in an enterprise, especially a financial share.

    7. Personal interest or involvement: a stake in her children's future.

  3. A vertical post secured in a socket at the edge of a platform, as on a truck bed, to help retain the load.

  4. Mormon Church A territorial division consisting of a group of wards under the jurisdiction of a president.

  5. Sports & Games

    1. Money or property risked in a wager or gambling game. Often used in the plural. See Synonyms at bet.

    2. The prize awarded the winner of a contest or race.

    3. A race offering a prize to the winner, especially a horserace in which the prize consists of money contributed equally by the horse owners.

    4. A share or an interest in an enterprise, especially a financial share.

    5. Personal interest or involvement: a stake in her children's future.

    1. A share or an interest in an enterprise, especially a financial share.

    2. Personal interest or involvement: a stake in her children's future.

  7. A grubstake.

tr.v.   staked, stak·ing, stakes

    1. To mark the location or limits of with or as if with stakes: stake out a claim.

    2. To claim as one's own: staked out a place for herself in industry.

  2. To fasten, secure, or support with a stake or stakes.

  3. To tether or tie to a stake.

  4. To gamble or risk; hazard.

  5. To provide working capital for; finance.

Phrasal Verb(s):
stake out

  1. To assign (a police officer, for example) to an area to conduct surveillance.

  2. To keep under surveillance.


Idiom(s):
at stakeAt risk; in question.

[Middle English, from Old English staca.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
stake (so/sth)

  1. tv.
    to position a person so that someone or something can be observed or followed. : Marlowe staked out the apartment building and watched patiently for an hour.
  2. tv.
    to position a person to observe someone or something. : We staked out two men to keep watch.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

stake  (n)
"pointed stick or post," O.E. staca, from P.Gmc. *stakon (cf. O.N. stiaki, Du. staak, Ger. stake), from PIE base *steg- "pole, stick." The Gmc. word has been borrowed in Sp. (estaca), O.Fr. (estaque), and It. stacca) and was borrowed back as attach. Meaning "post upon which persons were bound for death by burning" is recorded from c.1205. Stake-body as a type of truck is attested from 1907.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: stake
Function: noun
1 : the subject matter (as property or an obligation) of an interpleader
2 : an interest or share in an esp. commercial undertaking
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Idioms & Phrases

at stake

At risk to be won or lost, as in We have a great deal at stake in this transaction. This phrase uses stake in the sense of something that is wagered. Shakespeare used it in Troilus and Cressida (3:3): "I see my reputation is at stake." [Late 1500s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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