A
Action
The amount of money wagered. In poker, the placing of money into the pot.
Active Player
A player who is still in the pot.
All in
A player is considered to be All-In when he or she bets all his or her remaining chips. Going 'All-In' in poker, to call or to bet all your chips. If another player bets more chips than you have in a No Limit game, you can go All-In and stake your total stack against an equivalent amount of your opponent's stack.
All or Nothing
In Keno, a ticket that only pays if all picked numbers are drawn or none of the picked numbers are drawn.
Ante
In poker, a small portion of the minimum bet that each player is required to put into the pot before a new hand starts.
Any Craps
In Craps, a bet made on 2, 3 or 12 rolling on the next roll
Any Seven
In Craps, a bet made that seven will be the next number rolled
Arm
A term used in the game of craps to denote a player who is so skilled at throwing the dice that they are able to alter the conventional odds of the game.
B
Baccarat
Also called Punto Banco and Chemin De Fer - these games are similar to Baccarat but requires a great deal of skill. Baccarat is a table game that uses 6 or 8 decks of cards and does not require much skill.
Banker
In a card game, the dealer or the players who books the action of the other players at the table.
Bankroll
A player's total available gambling money.
Basic Strategy
In blackjack, the set of plays that you should make to maximize your advantage.
Bet
To wager.
Betting Limits
In a table game, the minimum and maximum amounts of money that you can wager on one bet. You cannot wager less than the minimum or more than the maximum amount posted.
Bingo
Bingo in its traditional form, is a prize game where players buy cards with numbers on them in a 5 x 5 grid corresponding to the five letters in the word B-I-N-G-O. Numbers are then drawn at random (out of a possible 75 in American Bingo, and 90 in British and Australian Bingo) until one player completes a 'Bingo' line with five numbers in a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal row on one of their cards and wins the prize. Bingo rules and payouts and play variations vary from place to place.
Bingo Marker
A dauber that is used to cover the numbers on a bingo game card.
Blind Bet
A bet that certain poker players are required to make because of their betting positions.
Bluff
In poker, players bluff when raising with a weak hand in hopes of driving out players with stronger hands.
Board
In poker, the community cards dealt face-up in the centre of the table are referred to as on the 'board'.
Boat
Another term for a full house.
Boxing
In horse racing, a single ticket comprised of more than one parlay.
Break-Even Point
The break-even point is the point at which if you played forever, the bets you made would approximately equal the payoffs you'd receive.
Bring-In
In seven-card stud, the bring-in is a mandatory bet made by the player with the lowest upcard in the first round of betting.
Buck
A $100 wager
Bump
To raise
Burn Card
In card games, the card temporarily removed from play. After a shuffle and cut, one card is placed on the bottom of the deck or in the discard tray, which is called burning the card.
Bust
In Blackjack, to go over twenty-one. If you bust you lose.
Button
In poker, a disc used as a marker that is moved from player to player after each hand to designate the dealer position.
C
Call
In poker, when a player matches the current bet on the table. In keno and bingo, to call, is to draw the numbers for each game.
Caller
In a bingo game, the person who is responsible for choosing the game pattern, drawing each bingo ball and reading each number clearly. In poker, the caller is someone who has called a bet.
Card Counting
Keeping track of all cards that have been played since the shuffle.
Card Shark
A person who is an expert at cards.
Carousel
A group of slot machines that are positioned in a ring, enabling a change person to stand in the centre.
Catch
In keno, to catch a number means that a number you have marked on your keno ticket has been drawn
Chase
Having lost money on a bet, 'chasing' is having another bet simply to try and get back the loss.
Check
In casino gambling, a check is another term for a chip. In poker, a player can check in order to stay in the game but not bet.
Chips
Round tokens that are used on casino gaming tables in lieu of cash.
Chip Tray
The tray in front of a dealer that holds that tables inventory of chips.
Cold
A player on a losing streak, or a slot machine that isn't paying out.
"Whoa, you're on a Cold . Too bad about that"
Color Up
When a player leaving a game exchanges smaller denomination chips for larger denomination chips.
Combination Way Ticket
In Keno, a ticket in which groups of numbers are bet several different ways, allowing the player to spread money over more combinations.
Come Bet
In Craps, a bet made on the come, after a point is made. This bet is located on the come line.
Come Out Roll
In Craps, the first roll of the dice and any subsequent roll when there is no point established.
Conditioning
A players marked choices, usually along the top of the ticket shows the number of spots played, number of games and the price.
Copy
In Pai Gow poker, when a player and the banker have the same two-card hand, or the same five-card hand. The banker wins all copies.
Crapping Out
In Craps, to roll a 2, 3 or 12 on the come out roll.
Craps
Casino dice table-game. See Casino Games Rules & Strategy section
Credit Button
In slot machines or video machines, the button that allows players to bank coins in the form of credits.
Croupier
The French word for dealer, used in the games of baccarat and roulette.
Cut
When the dealer divides a deck into two parts and inverts them after they have been well shuffled.
D
Deal
To give out the cards during a hand
Designated Dealer
In poker games like Texas Hold'em, the player to the left of the dealer bets first. In a poker room where each game has a resident dealer, a different player serves as the designated dealer for each hand.
Deuce
A two in dice. See Poker Hand Rankings.
Dime Bet
A $1000 wager
Discard Tray
A tray on the dealer's right side that holds all the cards that have been played or discarded.
Dollar Bet
A $100 wager
Double Down
In blackjack, it is the player's option to double their original bet in exchange for receiving only one more card. To do this the player turns over their first two cards and places an equal bet alongside the original bet.
Doubling-Up
The basis of some widely used systems. After a loss the player doubles the size of his previous bet hoping to win back the money lost and make a profit.
Double Or Nothing
An even-money bet. A bet that pays off exactly the amount wagered.
Down To The Felt
Totally out of money, broke.
Draw
In draw poker, the second round of cards that are dealt.
Draw Button
In video poker this button allows the player to draw up to five new cards.
Drop Box
On a gaming table, the box that serves as a repository for cash, markers, and chips.
E
Edge
The casino's advantage over the player in any game. Also known as house edge.
Even Money
A bet that pays you back the same amount you wagered, plus your original wager - a pay-off of 1-1.
Expected Return
In video poker it's the average amount paid back on a particular play for a particular bet.
Expected Win Rate
A percentage of the total amount of money wagered that you can expect to win or lose over time.
F
Face Cards
The king, queen or jack of each suite.
Fifth Street
The fifth community card in Hold 'em or Omaha (in these games, 5th street is more often called "the river."). Also sometimes used to refer to the fifth card received in 7 card stud.
First Base
The first seat nearest the shoe in blackjack. This position is dealt with first.
Five Number Bet
A bet only possible on the double zero roulette games which includes 00,0,1,2,3 and has the highest house edge of 7.89%.
Flat Top
A slot machine whose jackpot is always a fixed amount, as opposed to a progressive jackpot.
Float
The table bank.
Flop
In Hold 'em or Omaha, the first three community cards, turned up all at once.
Flush draw
To hold four cards of the same suit, for example, 3-4-8-10 of hearts, and thus to be hoping to catch a fifth suited card (in this case another heart) that would give you aflush.
Flush In poker
A hand consisting of five cards of one suit.
Fold
In poker, when a player declines a bet and drops out of the hand.
Four Of A Kind
Four cards of the same rank. Also known as quads.
Fourth Street
The fourth community card in Hold 'em or Omaha (in these games, 4th street is more often called "the turn."). Also sometimes used to refer to the fourth card received in 7 card stud.
Full House
In poker, a hand consisting of a three of a kind and a pair.
Full Pay
In video poker it's usually the best payoff schedule offered for a particular game.
G
Gambling
Risking money against the casino or a game for a desired outcome.
Game
A recreational contest that involves an agreed structure that would determine a winner.
Garbage Hand
A hand of cards delt to a player that present little or no value in the game being played.
Green Chip
Usually references a chip that has a value of 25 dollars.
Grind
The act of playing small stakes, to win small stakes.
Gross Winnings
The total payout (including your stake).
H
Hand
Refers to the cards that you hold, or to everything that happens in a card game
between shuffles of the deck.
Heads-up play
When a hand has been reduced to only two players.
High-Low poker
Any poker game where the highest and lowest hands split the pot. It is possible to have a hand that wins both, for example, A-2-3-4-5 is a straight but is also (in most forms of high-low poker) also considered the lowest possible hand. In some forms of high-low, the lowest possible hand is A-2-3-4-6, and in others (although usually this is true only in low-only games), the lowest possible hand is 2-3-4-5-7 (because this hand does not contain an Ace).
Hit
To take another card. The card received is also called a hit.
Hole Card
The dealer's face down card. This card is unseen.
Horn Bet
A one-roll bet that combines the 2, 3, 11 and 12.
I
Inside Bet
A bet in roulette on a single number including 0 or 00, or any combination of numbers.
Inside Straight draw
Four cards that can make a straight by hitting one specific card, somewhere in the middle, such as 4-6-7-8 (where only a Five could give the player a straight). Compare this to an Open-ended straight draw, where cards on either end could complete the hand.
Insurance
A side bet in blackjack that's offered when the dealer's upcard is an ace. If the dealer has a blackjack, the bet is paid 2-1. If the dealer does not, the insurance bet loses.
Casino Dictionary 