stair|way /steə r we I / (stairways ) N‑COUNT A stairway is a staircase or a flight of steps, inside or outside a building.
stair|well /steə r wel/ (stairwells ) N‑COUNT The stairwell is the part of a building that contains the staircase.
stake ◆◆◇ /ste I k/ (stakes , staking , staked )
1 PHRASE If something is at stake , it is being risked and might be lost or damaged if you are not successful. □ The tension was naturally high for a game with so much at stake. □ At stake is the success or failure of world trade talks.
2 N‑PLURAL The stakes involved in a contest or a risky action are the things that can be gained or lost. □ By arresting the organisation's leaders the government has raised the stakes.
3 VERB If you stake something such as your money or your reputation on the result of something, you risk your money or reputation on it. □ [V n + on ] He has staked his political future on an election victory.
4 N‑COUNT If you have a stake in something such as a business, it matters to you, for example because you own part of it or because its success or failure will affect you. □ [+ in ] He enjoyed an entrepreneurial role where he had a big financial stake in his own efforts.
5 N‑PLURAL You can use stakes to refer to something that is like a contest. For example, you can refer to the choosing of a leader as the leadership stakes . □ She won hands down in the glamour stakes.
6 N‑COUNT A stake is a pointed wooden post which is pushed into the ground, for example in order to support a young tree.
7 PHRASE If you stake a claim , you say that something is yours or that you have a right to it. □ Jane is determined to stake her claim as an actress.
▸ stake out PHRASAL VERB If you stake out a position that you are stating or a claim that you are making, you are defending the boundaries or limits of the position or claim. □ [V P n] I am trying to stake out a position between extremes. COLLOCATIONS stake NOUN 4
noun + stake : equity, majority, minority
adjective + stake : high, large, significant; controlling
verb + stake : acquire, buy, take; sell; hold, own, retain
stake|hold|er /ste I khoʊldə r / (stakeholders ) N‑COUNT Stakeholders are people who have an interest in a company's or organization's affairs. [BUSINESS ]
sta ke|hold|er pe n|sion (stakeholder pensions ) N‑COUNT In Britain, a stakeholder pension is a flexible pension scheme with low charges. Both employees and the state contribute to the scheme, which is optional, and is in addition to the basic state pension. [BUSINESS ]
stake|out /ste I aʊt/ (stakeouts ) also stake-out N‑COUNT If police officers are on a stakeout , they are secretly watching a building for evidence of criminal activity.
stal|ac|tite /stæ ləkta I t, [AM ] stəlæ k-/ (stalactites ) N‑COUNT A stalactite is a long piece of rock which hangs down from the roof of a cave. Stalactites are formed by the slow dropping of water containing the mineral lime.
stal|ag|mite /stæ ləgma I t, [AM ] stəlæ g-/ (stalagmites ) N‑COUNT A stalagmite is a long piece of rock which sticks up from the floor of a cave. Stalagmites are formed by the slow dropping of water containing the mineral lime.
stale /ste I l/ (staler , stalest )
1 ADJ Stale food is no longer fresh or good to eat. □ Their daily diet consisted of a lump of stale bread, a bowl of rice and stale water.
2 ADJ Stale air or a stale smells is unpleasant because it is no longer fresh. □ A layer of smoke hung low in the stale air. □ …the smell of stale sweat.
3 ADJ If you say that a place, an activity, or an idea is stale , you mean that it has become boring because it is always the same. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ Her relationship with Mark has become stale.
stale|mate /ste I lme I t/ (stalemates )
1 N‑VAR Stalemate is a situation in which neither side in an argument or contest can win or in which no progress is possible. □ The President has ended the stalemate over cutting the country's budget deficit.
2 N‑VAR In chess, stalemate is a position in which a player cannot make any move which is allowed by the rules, so that the game ends and no one wins.
stalk /stɔː k/ (stalks , stalking , stalked )
1 N‑COUNT The stalk of a flower, leaf, or fruit is the thin part that joins it to the plant or tree. □ A single pale blue flower grows up from each joint on a long stalk. □ …corn stalks.
2 VERB If you stalk a person or a wild animal, you follow them quietly in order to kill them, catch them, or observe them carefully. □ [V n] He stalks his victims like a hunter after a deer.
3 VERB If someone stalks someone else, especially a famous person or a person they used to have a relationship with, they keep following them or contacting them in an annoying and frightening way. □ [V n] Even after their divorce he continued to stalk and threaten her. ● stalk|ing N‑UNCOUNT □ The Home Secretary is considering a new law against stalking.
4 VERB If you stalk somewhere, you walk there in a stiff, proud, or angry way. □ [V adv/prep] If his patience is tried at meetings he has been known to stalk out.
stalk|er /stɔː kə r / (stalkers ) N‑COUNT A stalker is someone who keeps following or contacting someone else, especially a famous person or a person they used to have a relationship with, in an annoying and frightening way.
sta lk|ing horse (stalking horses )
1 N‑COUNT If you describe a person or thing as a stalking horse , you mean that it is being used to obtain a temporary advantage so that someone can get what they really want. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ I think the development is a stalking horse for exploitation of the surrounding countryside.