Stake

/steɪk/ · noun

Meaning

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..

Definitions by Sense

1. 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.
2. (croquet) 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.
3. 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.
4. (with definite article) The piece of timber to which a person condemned to death was affixed to be burned.
5. A share or interest in a business or a given situation.
6. That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge.
7. 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.
8. (Mormonism) A territorial division comprising all the Mormons (typically several thousand) in a geographical area.

Example Sentences

We have surveyor's stakes at all four corners of this field, to mark exactly its borders.

A sharpened stake strong Dryas found.

Thomas Cranmer was burnt at the stake.

However, the word "witch" came to be applied almost exclusively to women who [...] were usually old and ugly, and for this reason many unfortunate old ladies, whose only crimes were loneliness and a lack of beauty, went to the stake.

The owners let the managers eventually earn a stake in the business.

The French Government is Eurostar's majority shareholder, with the country's state-owned railway SNCF holding a 55% stake, while Belgian state operator SNCB has a 5% stake.

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.

to stake vines or plants

Synonyms for stake

Antonyms for stake

Related Words

Word Forms

• stakes
• staking
• staked

Usage Notes

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