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 support2 a: a post to which a person is bound for execution by burning b: execution by burning at a stake3 a: something that is staked for gain or loss b: the prize in a contest c: an interest or share in an undertaking or enterprise4: a Mormon territorial jurisdiction comprising a group of wards5: grubstake6: stakes race —usually used in plural but singular or plural in construction

— at stake

: at issue : in jeopardy