Glossary
Action – Placing a bet in a table game is known as putting that money “into action”. All told, the action describes the total amount of money that has been bet in a given game during a play session.
Add-on – This is a poker term meaning that a player can buy extra chips in a tournament.
Aggregate Winnings – Total of all winnings made at a casino or during a day of wagering.
Ante – To begin playing in certain card games, players are required to ‘ante up’ which means put down their bets. Especially common in games like Stud Poker.
Baccarat – High stakes game played in separate room at casino using six to eight decks of cards. Punto Banco version is total game of chance, but Chemin De Fer requires some level of skill.
Banker – Depending upon the game, this could indicate the dealer or it may be a game where players take turn being the banker.
Bankroll – Term that refers to the money, in total, that a player has allotted to themselves to spend on a given tournament or during a day of playing at a casino. It is used to back all bets. Some players go so far as to create separate bankrolls for different games like a roulette bankroll and a poker bankroll. Known also as a wad.
Bonus – Cash offered to sign up at online casino, play certain games or place a certain amount in bets.
Buy in – This is the term for converting one’s cash into chips that can be used within a casino. Chips used at variety of table games such as poker, craps, baccarat or roulette.
Cashier’s Cage – Players visit here to turn their cash into chips for play in casino.
Casino – Establishment designed specifically for gambling and related entertainments. Name means “little house” and comes from Italian language. Typically luxurious with variety of attractions to interest players aside from betting.
Face Cards – All royal suit cards like Kings, Queens and Jacks.
Flop – In Poker games such as Omaha and Texas Hold ‘em, these are 3 cards dealt face up on the gaming table.
Jackpot – High amount normally won from slot machines or in lotteries.
Layout – Gaming table cloth, usually green felt, marked with rules and instructions for game.
Odds – Mathematical formula which indicates likelihood of winning and is set by casino. May refer to a fraction by which a stake is multiplied to add to gambler’s winnings.
Progressive – Generally used to describe slot machines where jackpot is raised by each coin inserted. Total jackpot is fed by network of slot machines or by online players.
Rated – Casinos keep track of pro players and those with above average skill. This description is used to indicate such players and is stored in the casino’s computerized records.
RNG – Term meaning ‘Random Number Generator’ and is the backbone of online casinos. This software is utilized to make games of chance mathematically the same as real life dice rolls, roulette spins and other random events.
Shoe – A box or other device that is designed to hold and serve out cards during a game. Normally holds 6 or 8 decks of cards.
Suit – Division of typical playing cards such as Clubs, Hearts, Diamonds and Spades.
Wild Card – Card that represents any card a player chooses, usually a Joker.