stake

noun [C] (RISK)

/steɪk/

Definition

› the amount of money that you risk on the result of something such as a game or competition: She spent two weeks in Las Vegas playing high-stakes blackjack at the casinos.Gambling and bookmakingTaking risks the stakes [plural] › In an activity or competition, the stakes are the reward for the person who wins or succeeds in it: The team is playing for enormous stakes - the chance to play in the final.Prizes, rewards and medals the Stakes › used in the names of horse races in which the prize money is provided by all the owners of the horses that are competing in the raceHorse racingHorse riding the beauty, popularity, etc. stakes › a situation where someone is judged on how much of a particular quality they have: The prime minister is not very high in the popularity stakes (= he is not very popular) at the moment.Situations and circumstances raise/up the stakes › to increase the prize or reward in a competition or any activity in which you are competingGambling and bookmakingTaking risks › to make a situation more urgent or more difficult to ignore: The stowaways are trying to raise the stakes by refusing to eat until they are given money and aid.Increasing and intensifying

(Definition of stake noun (RISK) from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

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