Main Entry: ¹stake

Pronunciation: \ˈstāk\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English staca; akin to Middle Low German stake pole, and perhaps to Latin tignum beam

Date: before 12th century

1 : a pointed piece of wood or other material driven or to be driven into the ground as a marker or support
2 a : a post to which a person is bound for execution by burning b : execution by burning at a stake
3 a : something that is staked for gain or loss b : the prize in a contest c : an interest or share in an undertaking or enterprise
4 : a Mormon territorial jurisdiction comprising a group of wards
5 : grubstake
6 : stakes race —usually used in plural but singular or plural in construction

— at stake : at issue : in jeopardy