Wager
Part of speech: verb
Definition: To put something up as collateral
Part of speech: noun
Definition: Something deposited, laid, or hazarded on the event of a contest or an unsettled question; a bet; a stake; a pledge. A contract by which two parties or more agree that a certain sum of money, or other thing, shall be paid or delivered to one of them, on the happening or not happening of an uncertain event. That on which bets are laid; the subject of a bet. Agent noun of wage; one who wages.
Example sentence: A true Englishman doesn't joke when he is talking about so serious a thing as a wager.
Stake
Part of speech: verb
Definition: To fasten, support, or defend with stakes; as, to stake vines or plants.To pierce or wound with a stake.To put at hazard upon the issue of competition, or upon a future contingency; to wager; to pledge.To provide another with money in order to play.
Part of speech: noun
Definition: A piece of wood or other material, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a support or stay; as, a stake to support vines, fences, hedges, etc.A stick inserted upright in a lop, eye, or mortise, at the side or end of a cart, a flat car, or the like, to prevent goods from falling off.The piece of timber to which a martyr was affixed to be burned.A share or interest in a business or a given situation (in the sense "stake a claim").A small anvil usually furnished with a tang to enter a hole in a bench top, as used by tinsmiths, blacksmiths, etc., for light work, punching upon, etc.That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge.A territorial division.
Example sentence: The acceptance of death gives you more of a stake in life, in living life happily, as it should be lived. Living for the moment.