for the sake of

Idioms  

1. Also for one's sake . Out of consideration or regard for a person or thing; for someone's or something's advantage or good. For example, For Jill's sake we did not serve meat , or We have to stop fighting for the sake of family unity . [Early 1200s]

2. For the purpose or motive of, as in You like to quarrel only for the sake of an argument. [Early 1200s]

3. for God's sake . Also . An exclamation showing surprise, impatience, anger, or some other emotion, depending on the context. For example, For God's sake, I didn't expect to see you here , or Hurry up, for goodness sake , or For heaven's sake, how can you say such a mean thing? or For pity's sake, finish your dinner . The variants are euphemisms for God. [c. 1300] For a synonym, see for the love of , def. 2.

---

Example Sentences

Producers would deliberately try to make contestants angry or upset for the sake of generating watchable drama, they say.

From BBC • May 27, 2026

Let’s assume, for the sake of this column, that your friend’s sister is indeed a bad actor.

From MarketWatch • May 25, 2026

“The de-extinction breathlessness,” says biologist Paul Knoepfler of UC Davis, “potentially endangers real animals for the sake of hypothetical future de-extincted ones.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026

It is hard to picture many people arguing against rules prohibiting fraud in the same way they might object to limits on their freedom for the sake of creativity.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026

But one of the applicants was the son of someone in one of the Munich orchestras, so, for the sake of fairness, the Philharmonic decided to make the first round of auditions blind.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell