at stake

Idioms

At risk to be won or lost, as in We have a great deal at stake in this transaction. This phrase uses stake in the sense of something that is wagered. Shakespeare used it in Troilus and Cressida (3:3): “I see my reputation is at stake.” [Late 1500s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The installation begins with works made in New York and San Francisco early on, providing a sense of what was at stake in the formative years.

From The Wall Street Journal

Both approaches miss what is at stake: academic integrity and the replacement of human interaction with machine interaction.

From The Wall Street Journal

The obvious answer to each was no, and despite the speech lacking Clinton’s famed organization and delivery, it at least helped to frame what was at stake.

From Salon

Riedl knew Cole made the bet but thought he had only a few thousand dollars at stake.

From The Wall Street Journal

"There's also a much broader principle at stake here. No one, regardless of their title or their friends, should be beyond the scrutiny of Parliament," he added.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023