stake
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stake¹
- /steɪk/
Sounds like steak · Rhymes with -eɪk
Where it comes from
From Middle English stake, from Old English staca (“pin, tack, stake”), from Proto-West Germanic *stakō, from Proto-Germanic *stakô (“stake”), from Proto-Indo-European *stog-, *steg- (“stake”).
Cognate with Scots stak, staik, Saterland Frisian Stak, West Frisian staak, Dutch staak, Low German Stake, Norwegian stake, Spanish estaca.
noun stakes
- A piece of wood or other material, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a marker or a support or stay. We have surveyor's stakes at all four corners of this field, to mark exactly its borders.
-
A piece of wood driven in the ground, placed in the middle of the court, that is used as the finishing point after scoring 12 hoops in croquet.
Similar: peg
- A stick or similar object (e.g., steel channel or angle stock) inserted upright in a lop, eye, or mortise, at the side or end of a cart, flat car, flatbed trailer, or the like, to prevent goods from falling off; often connected in a grid forming a stakebody.
- The piece of timber to which a person condemned to death was affixed to be burned. Thomas Cranmer was burnt at the stake.
- A share or interest in a business or a given situation. The owners let the managers eventually earn a stake in the business.
- That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge.
- A small anvil usually furnished with a tang to enter a hole in a bench top, as used by tinsmiths, blacksmiths, etc., for light work, punching hole in or cutting a work piece, or for specific forming techniques etc.
- A territorial division comprising all the Mormons (typically several thousand) in a geographical area. Every city, or stake, including a chief town and surrounding towns, has its president, with two counselors; and this president has a high council of chosen men.
verb stakes · staking · staked
- To fasten, support, defend, or delineate with stakes. to stake vines or plants
- To pierce or wound with a stake. You see, I'd made a bargain with him to buy the horse for a hundred and twenty—a swinging price, but I always liked the horse. And what does he do but go and stake him—fly at a hedge with stakes in it, atop of a bank with a ditch before it.
- To put at risk upon success in competition, or upon a future contingency. I'll ſtake my Lamb that near the Fountain plays, / And from the Brink his dancing Shade ſurveys.
- To provide (another) with money in order to engage in an activity as betting or a business venture. John went broke, so to keep him playing, Jill had to stake him.
- To deposit and risk a considerable amount of cryptocurrency in order to participate in the proof of stake process of verification. Any peer can participate in the mining process by staking coins in order to validate a new transaction. To become a miner, there are two options; you can stake your coins to be used by a trustworthy node […], or you can submit a full node to be selected as a miner.
- To stretch leather skin over a piece of iron held knee-height, in preparation to use the skin in the creation of gloves.
Stake²
Where it comes from
English surname, from the noun stake. Compare Staff, Stack.
proper noun Stakes
- A surname.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: impale, punt, back, game, post, gage, venture, adventure, wager, bet, interest, hazard, jeopardize, bet on, pole, clamp
Translations
Every language
noun pointed long and slender piece of wood etc.
| Español | estaca |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 말뚝 malttuk |
| 日本語 | 棒 bō, 杭 kui |
| 中文 | 木樁 /木桩 mùzhuāng |
| Português | estaca |
| Français | pieu, pal, tuteur, jalon, piquet |
| Deutsch | Pfahl, Pflock |
| Italiano | palo, paletto, picchetto, piolo, stecca, tutore |
| Ελληνικά | πάσσαλος pássalos, παλούκι paloúki |
| Română | par |
| Русский | кол kol, столб stolb, подпо́рка podpórka, ко́лышек kólyšek |
| Tiếng Việt | cọc |
| العربية | وَتِد watid, خَازُوق ḵāzūq |
| עברית | יָתֵד yātḗḏ |
noun croquet: finishing stick
| Français | piquet |
|---|
noun upright stick to prevent goods falling off a cart
| Italiano | palo, stecca, sponda |
|---|---|
| Русский | щеко́лда ščekólda, кол kol |
noun timber to which a martyr was affixed to be burned
| Español | hoguera |
|---|---|
| Português | fogueira |
| Français | poteau |
| Deutsch | Marterpfahl, Scheiterhaufen |
| Italiano | rogo |
| Русский | столб stolb |
| العربية | مِحْرَقَة miḥraqa |
| עברית | מוֹקֵד moqéd |
noun share or interest in a business
| Español | participación, interés, implicación, inversión |
|---|---|
| Português | participação |
| Français | participation |
| Deutsch | Anteil |
| Italiano | partecipazione, interesse |
| Русский | до́ля dólja, проце́нт procént, уча́стие učástije, пай paj |
| العربية | حِصَّة ḥiṣṣa |
| עברית | מְנָיָה m'nayá |
noun wager or pledge
| Français | enjeu, mise |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Einsatz, Poule |
| Italiano | posta, in gioco, in palio, palio, posta in gioco |
| Русский | ста́вка stávka |
| العربية | رِهَان rihān |
noun Mormonism: territorial division
| Español | estaca |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 스테이크 seuteikeu |
| Português | estaca |
| Français | pieu |
| Deutsch | Pfahl |
| Italiano | palo |
| Русский | кол kol |
verb to fasten, support, or defend with stakes
| Español | estacar, machetear |
|---|---|
| Português | estacar |
| Deutsch | anpflocken, anbinden, hochbinden |
| Русский | укрепля́ть ukrepljátʹ, укрепи́ть ukrepítʹ, подпира́ть podpirátʹ, подпере́ть podperétʹ |
verb to put at hazard upon the issue of competition
| Español | poner en juego |
|---|---|
| Italiano | mettere in gioco |
| Русский | ста́вить на карту stávitʹ na kartu, ста́вить на кон stávitʹ na kon |
Talk about this word "stake." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/stake. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026. stake. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/stake "stake." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 5, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/stake.Cite this
@misc{stake_2026,
title = {stake},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/stake},
urldate = {2026-11-05}
}
