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

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sake ² American  

[sah-kee] / ˈsɑ ki /

Or saké,

noun

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

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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

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sake ² British  

/ ˈsækɪ /

noun

1. a Japanese alcoholic drink made from fermented rice

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sake Idioms  

1. see for the sake of.

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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

Indeed, tech leaders already have begun sounding the alarm on rising AI token costs, and many are well past the pilot phase of AI, where initiatives were funded for the sake of experimentation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Sell for the sake of the Sparks, who have long deserved an owner who wants seriously to run the team like Walter’s group runs, well, the Dodgers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026

And more so, the exciting possibility of passion for passion’s sake, without rushing to mold it into anything more, unless it proves itself to actually be something more, which only time can tell.

From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026

"For the sake of a higher conviction, they are paying a price."

From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026

Then she laughed and said, “Oh, for heaven’s sake, what am I doing with this thing?”

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

Related Words

• well-being