wager Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the act of gambling
    bet.
    • he did it on a bet
  2. noun the money risked on a gamble
    stake; bet; stakes.
  3. verb stake on the outcome of an issue
    play; bet.
    • I bet $100 on that new horse
    • She played all her money on the dark horse
  4. verb maintain with or as if with a bet
    bet.
    • I bet she will be there!

WordNet

Wa"ger noun
Etymology
OE. wager, wajour, OF. wagiere, or wageure, E. gageure. See Wage, v. t.
Definitions
  1. Something deposited, laid, or hazarded on the event of a contest or an unsettled question; a bet; a stake; a pledge.
    Besides these plates for horse races, the wagers may be as the persons please. Sir W. Temple.
    If any atheist can stake his soul for a wager against such an inexhaustible disproportion, let him never hereafter accuse others of credulity. Bentley.
  2. (Law) 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. Bouvier. ✍ At common law a wager is considered as a legal contract which the courts must enforce unless it be on a subject contrary to public policy, or immoral, or tending to the detriment of the public, or affecting the interest, feelings, or character of a third person. In many of the United States an action can not be sustained upon any wager or bet. Chitty. Bouvier.
  3. That on which bets are laid; the subject of a bet.
Wa"ger transitive verb
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Wagered ; present participle & verbal noun Wagering
Definitions
  1. To hazard on the issue of a contest, or on some question that is to be decided, or on some casualty; to lay; to stake; to bet.
    And wagered with him Pieces of gold 'gainst this which he wore. Shak.
Wa"ger intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To make a bet; to lay a wager.
    'T was merry when You wagered on your angling. Shak.

Webster 1913