the.com/wager
a fancy word for putting your money where your mouth shouldn't be
means a bet — money or stakes risked on the uncertain outcome of something, or the act of placing such a bet.
from From the Anglo-Norman 'wageure,' built on 'wager' meaning to pledge or promise, which traces back to a Frankish root related to 'gage' — a pledge or pawn. That same family gives us 'wage' (the pledge of pay for work) and 'engage' (to bind by promise), so betting your shirt and earning your paycheck are distant cousins, both rooted in the idea of giving your word as security.
- famous bet
- Pascal's Wager gambled belief on God's existence
- around the world
- Phileas Fogg's 80-day trip was a £20,000 wager
- old roots
- comes from Old North French for pledge or promise
- legal weight
- once meant a solemn pledge to appear in court
- science bet
- Stephen Hawking lost famous wagers on black holes
churchill downs kentucky derby — the most famous horse race wager in america, with over $1 billion bet annually at louisville since 1875
world series betting — the october baseball championship generates billions in legal and illegal wagers across north america
super bowl squares pool — an estimated $100 billion wagered illegally in office pools and with bookmakers on super bowl sunday