gambling
Risking stakes hopefully
Gambling is risking money or valuables on an uncertain outcome—cards, dice, sports, horse races, slot machines.
The appeal lies in the possibility of winning more than you wager, though the odds typically favor the house.
Extended uses apply to any risky venture: Starting a business is always a gamble.
Gambling can become compulsive, leading to addiction.
Stake on uncertainty
- stakeSharpened post or share
- oddsLikelihood expressed numerically
- sportsbookGambling venue for athletics
- bookieOne who takes wagers
handicap · parlay · spread · accumulator · futures · over-under · punter · tipster
Narrow elongated openings
- rouletteSpinning wheel wager
- blackjackCard game to twenty-one
- baccaratCard game targeting nine
- crapsCasino dice wagering
poker · dealer · croupier · chip · highroller · jackpot · house-edge · keno
Accumulated gambling prize
- payoutMoney distributed to recipient
- windfallUnanticipated lucky gain
- prizeReward for winning
- haulPull or carry laboriously
hitting · payday · bonanza · take · pot · purse · score · payoff
Chinese matching tile game
- backgammonTwo-player dice board contest
- diceMarked cubes for chance
- cardsStiff paper rectangles
- lotteryRandomized prize distribution
scratch-off · bingo · fan-tan · dominos · poker · raffle · sweepstakes · tombola
Posts or wagers
- high-stakesInvolving significant consequences
- speculationUnproven theorizing or risky investment
- ventureRisky new undertaking
- hazardSource of potential harm
exposure · uncertainty · jeopardy · chance · recklessness · thrill · gambit · all-in
Likelihood of occurrence
- fortuneWealth or destiny
- superstitionBaseless belief in omens
- jinxCurse bringing misfortune
- charmAttractive personal quality
rabbit-foot · randomness · fate · fluke · horseshoe · ritual
Supply funds for
- edgeBoundary or sharpness
- countingDetermining quantity sequentially
- probabilityQuantified chance of occurrence
- varianceSpread around the mean
discipline · tells · bluffing · system · progression · martingale
Money owed another
Irresistible urge to act
- chasingFollowing to catch
- self-exclusionVoluntary personal prohibition
- interventionPurposeful involvement to change course
- relapseReturn to former illness
recovery · denial · enabler · hotline · counseling · dopamine · withdrawal · obsession
wager
Stake on uncertainty
- stakeSharpened post or share
- oddsLikelihood expressed numerically
- sportsbookGambling venue for athletics
bookie · handicap · parlay · spread · accumulator · futures · over-under · punter · tipster · lines
slots
Narrow elongated openings
craps · poker · dealer · croupier · chip · highroller · jackpot · house-edge · keno · wheel
jackpot
Accumulated gambling prize
haul · hitting · payday · bonanza · take · pot · purse · score · payoff
mahjong
Chinese matching tile game
- backgammonTwo-player dice board contest
- diceMarked cubes for chance
- cardsStiff paper rectangles
lottery · scratch-off · bingo · fan-tan · dominos · poker · raffle · sweepstakes · tombola
stakes
Posts or wagers
- high-stakesInvolving significant consequences
- speculationUnproven theorizing or risky investment
- ventureRisky new undertaking
hazard · exposure · uncertainty · jeopardy · chance · recklessness · thrill · gambit · all-in · double-down
chance
Likelihood of occurrence
- fortuneWealth or destiny
- superstitionBaseless belief in omens
- jinxCurse bringing misfortune
charm · rabbit-foot · randomness · fate · fluke · horseshoe · ritual
bankroll
Supply funds for
- edgeBoundary or sharpness
- countingDetermining quantity sequentially
- probabilityQuantified chance of occurrence
variance · discipline · tells · bluffing · system · progression · martingale
debt
Money owed another
wipeout · marker · underwater
compulsion
Irresistible urge to act
- chasingFollowing to catch
- self-exclusionVoluntary personal prohibition
- interventionPurposeful involvement to change course
relapse · recovery · denial · enabler · hotline · counseling · dopamine · withdrawal · obsession · rehabilitation
- gamblingcasinos, casino, bets, wager, wagers
- ancient pastimeschariot racing, Olympic Games, discus, javelin, boxing
- bad decisionsprocrastination, impulse buying, overspending, binge eating, cramming
- bad habitssmoking, drinking, lying, swearing, gossiping
- Las Vegascasino, slot machine, blackjack, poker, neon sign
- money mistakesoverspending, impulse buying, debt spiral, no savings, late payments
gamblingcertainty
Total absence of doubt
sure thing · guarantee · safe bet · security · predictability
gamblingsaving
Reserving for future use
investment · thrift · financial planning · conservation · hoarding
gamblingabstinence
Voluntary forgoing of indulgences
temperance · antigambling · sobriety · self-restraint · abstention
- gambling addictionUncontrollable urge to wager
- online gamblingWagering conducted via internet
- gambling debtsLosses from wagering
- illegal gamblingProhibited wagering activity
- gambling denPlace for wagering
- compulsive gamblingInability to resist betting