at stake

Idioms  

1. 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]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

at stake

As “The New Dark Ages” makes clear, there is a lot more at stake than the joy of reading in what the subtitle calls the “Dawn of the Post-Literate Society.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

Here is what is at stake for the countries concerned:

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

He accepted there was "a lot at stake" for City fans, the club and Manchester itself.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

He’s betting that as more people understand what’s at stake, they will keep showing up — even if they are planting trees for a future he’ll never see.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

A standard argument was that a Christian needed moral certainty of the truths of their faith, since the fate of their soul was at stake.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton