grubstake

[ gruhb-steyk ]

/ ˈgrʌbˌsteɪk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR grubstake ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

provisions, gear, etc., furnished to a prospector on condition of participating in the profits of any discoveries.

money or other assistance furnished at a time of need or of starting an enterprise.

verb (used with object), grub·staked, grub·stak·ing.

to furnish with a grubstake: I grubstaked him to two mules and supplies enough for five months.

Nearby words

grub screw, grub street, grubber, grubby, gruber, grubstake, grubstreet, grubworm, grudge, grudging, grudziadz

Origin of grubstake

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65; grub + stake²

Related forms

grub·stak·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for grubstake

On the strength of that I doubles my grubstake, and he no sooner gets his hands on the two sawbucks than he starts for the street.
Odd Numbers|Sewell Ford
"I want to give you a grubstake," answered the motor wizard.
Owen Clancy's Happy Trail|Burt L. Standish
Missourian chaps, and a couple of Cornishmen, but they went down to Eldorado to work at wages for a grubstake.
The God of His Fathers|Jack London
A job for coffee and cakes, and maybe a grubstake to work a few more lonely rocks.
Turnover Point|Alfred Coppel

Well, this Wunpost, as they call him, was working on a grubstake for a banker named Judson Eells.
Wunpost|Dane Coolidge

British Dictionary definitions for grubstake

grubstake

/ (ˈɡrʌbˌsteɪk) /

noun

US and Canadian informal supplies provided for a prospector on the condition that the donor has a stake in any finds

verb (tr)

US informal to furnish with such supplies

mainly US and Canadian to supply (a person) with a stake in a gambling game

Derived Forms

grubstaker, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012