Wager

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈweɪ.d͡ʒə(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. A bet or stake of money or something of value on the outcome of an uncertain event, or to risk something on the result of such an event
2. A risk taken by placing money or valuables on the possible outcome of an uncertain event, typically for a monetary return
3. An agreement where a person risks money or valuables based on the uncertain outcome of an event, with the potential for receiving a reward

Etymology: The verb "to wager" meant "to pledge" long before it meant to bet. Its ancestor came from Frankish, a Germanic language spoken in the early medieval Frankish kingdom, where a "wadi" was a pledge or security deposited to guarantee a promise. The Frankish verb "waddjōn" meant to pledge something of value. Through Old Northern French "wagier," the idea entered Middle English as "wajour" and "wageour," meaning a pledge or the thing staked on a promise. The key shift is from promising to gambling. Once people pledged goods to seal an agreement, they could also stake those goods on a contest, and the pledge became a bet. The noun "wager," meaning the stake itself, developed from the same sense. Over time the verb came to mean simply laying a bet on an outcome. The word is also a close relative of "wage" and "gage." French kept the same root in "gager," meaning to pledge or bet, and in the English "gage," meaning a pledge thrown down as a challenge. The noun "wager" is formed from the verb "wage" with the agent suffix "-er," showing that the English word and its Frankish ancestor share one root.

Synonyms: bet, stake, gamble

Antonyms: certainty, surety