sake

NOUN

[/seɪk/]

purpose or benefit; used in phrases like 'for the sake of'

💡 Concept

purpose or benefit; used in phrases like 'for the sake of'

🎵 Rhyme

For her child's sake, she'll wake to make art.

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🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/seɪk/

🇬🇧 UK/seɪk/

🌳Etymology

Rootsake

Origin

Sake derives from Old English 'sacu', originally meaning 'dispute' or 'lawsuit'. Over time, the semantic field broadened to encompass 'purpose', 'cause', and 'benefit', reflecting a shift from the legal/contentious sense to a more general notion of motivation or advantage. This English word is etymologically unrelated to Japanese sake (rice wine).

Breakdown

sacu (Old English: dispute, lawsuit) → sake (purpose, benefit). The word's meaning evolved from a concrete legal term denoting conflict to an abstract noun expressing purpose or advantage.

🎵Rhyme

maketakewakecakebreak

make

take

wake

cake

break

🔗Collocations

for the sake of

for old time's sake

for heaven's sake

for Pete's sake

for your own sake

📝Examples

😄 Fun example

“For goodness' sake, please stop singing in the shower at 6 AM!”

“He stayed late at work for his family's sake.”

😄 Fun example

“For art's sake, she painted her cat's nails rainbow colors.”

“They moved to the countryside for the sake of peace and quiet.”

📚Related Words

Synonyms

purposebenefitinterestadvantagegood

Antonyms

detrimentharm

reasoncausemotivegoalobjective

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sake — purpose or benefit; used in phrases like 'for the sake of'

Example Sentences