wager
/'weidʤə/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- The money risked on a gamble: A sum of money staked on the outcome of an uncertain event.
- The act of gambling: An agreement in which people risk money on the result of a future event.
Verb:
- To risk (money) on the outcome of an event: To stake money on the result of a race, game, or other uncertain event.
- To maintain with or as if with a bet: To express certainty about an outcome, often by backing it with a stake.
Usage Examples
Noun:
- He placed a large wager on the football match.
- The wager was for fifty dollars.
Verb:
- I will wager twenty dollars that our team wins.
- He wagered all his savings on the stock market.
Advanced Usage
"To lay/make a wager": To formally agree to a bet.
- They made a wager on who could run faster.
"Hedge one's wager": To reduce risk by betting on multiple outcomes. (Note: More commonly "hedge one's bets").
- He hedged his wager by also betting on the opposing team to place second.
Variants and Related Words
- Wagerer (n): A person who wagers or bets.
- The wagerer lost a significant amount.
Synonyms
- Bet (n/v): The most common synonym for both the act and the stake.
- Stake (n/v): Something risked or hazarded.
- Gamble (n/v): To play games of chance for money; to take risky action.
Related Phrases
- Wager a guess: To venture a guess, often with an implied element of risk in being wrong.
- I'll wager a guess and say the answer is forty-two.
Idioms
- "I wager...": A phrase used to express strong belief or prediction, sometimes without an actual monetary stake.
- I wager it will rain before noon.
Noun
- the money risked on a gamble
- the act of gambling
- he did it on a bet
Verb
- maintain with or as if with a bet
- I bet she will be there!
- stake on the outcome of an issue
- I bet $100 on that new horse
- She played all her money on the dark horse