stake
1.
2.
3. A vertical post secured in a socket at the edge of a platform, as on a truck bed, to help retain the load.
4. Mormon Church. A territorial division consisting of a group of wards under the jurisdiction of a president.
5. Often stakes Sports & Games. a. Money or property risked in a wager or gambling game. See synonyms at bet. b. The prize awarded the winner of a contest or race. c. A race offering a prize to the winner, especially a horserace in which the prize consists of money contributed equally by the horse owners.
6. a. A share or an interest in an enterprise, especially a financial share. b. Personal interest or involvement: a stake in her children's future.
7. A grubstake.
verb
staked, staking, stakes
2. To fasten, secure, or support with a stake or stakes.
3. To tether or tie to a stake.
4. To gamble or risk; hazard.
5. To provide working capital for; finance.
stake out
at stake
At risk; in question.
[Middle English, from Old English staca.]