sake

¹ American  

[seyk] / seɪk /

noun

1. cause, account, interest, or benefit.

   for the sake of all students.

   Synonyms:

   respect, consideration, regard

2. purpose or end.

   for the sake of appearances.

   Synonyms:

   reason

---

sake ² American  

[sah-kee] / ˈsɑ ki /

Or saké,

noun

1. a Japanese fermented, mildly alcoholic beverage made from rice.

---

sake ¹ British  

/ seɪk /

noun

1. benefit or interest (esp in the phrase for ( someone's or one's own ) sake )

2. the purpose of obtaining or achieving (esp in the phrase for the sake of ( something ))

3. used in various exclamations of impatience, urgency, etc

   for heaven's sake

   for pete's sake

---

sake ² British  

/ ˈsækɪ /

noun

1. a Japanese alcoholic drink made from fermented rice

---

sake Idioms  

1. see for the sake of.

---

Etymology

Origin of sake¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English sacu “lawsuit, cause”; cognate with German Sache “thing,” Old Norse sǫk “lawsuit”; akin to seek

Origin of sake²

First recorded in 1680–90; from Japanese sake; compare Okinawan saki

Explanation

Sake means the purpose for doing something. You might run a fund-raising marathon for the sake of sick children. Sake comes from the old English term for "affair," or "cause of guilt." We usually use sake to talk about the motivating cause of something we do. You might study hard for the sake of your grades. But then again, you might blow off your studies for the sake of having fun. Spelled the same way, but pronounced SAH-key, sake is also the name of a Japanese alcoholic drink made from fermented rice.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sake

Srinivasan said on X that he doesn’t start conflict for the sake of it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026

The journey will require an impenetrable will and a fearlessness to sacrifice everything for the sake of democracy for all.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

"We're not whinging for the sake of whinging - we're making noise because it is a massive safety issue."

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

While training at a new theater, she was surprised to find an old film projector still stored in the booth, and even more surprised to learn it was for Nolan’s sake.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

For everyone’s sake, I had to find a way to make things better.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo

Related Words

• well-being