Casino & Gambling Glossary Of Terms
The terms used in online casinos aren't that dissimilar to those used when gambling in land-based establishments. Oh ... and if you arrived on this page from a search engine or another website, don't forget to check out the TCC guide to the top casinos before you go and play!| Terms in italics are also defined within the glossary |
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| CASINO TERM | DEFINITION |
| 4oak | Four Of A Kind (card games). |
| 8/5 | A Video Poker expression for short-pay machines where the combination of Full House and Flush relates 8 to 5 (ie: 40 coin/25 coin payouts). |
| 9/6 | A Video Poker expression for full-pay machines where the combination of Full House and Flush relates 9 to 6 (ie: 45 coin/30 coin payouts). |
| Ante | A side bet in table games. Sometimes also used in Progressive table games. |
| Baccarat | Italian (or French) for "zero" but more applicably, a card game where "9" is the magic number (not "0"!). |
| BJ | See Blackjack. Or porn sites. |
| Blackjack | A combination of ace and other picture card dealt together as a two card hand in a game of 21. |
| Click2Pay | An online service used by some casinos to handle deposits and withdrawals in much the same way as the more established NETeller service. |
| Comps | Complimentary points accumulated at certain casinos that can usually be exchanged for chips or gifts. Normally between 0.025 and 0.3% of all wagers and paid out at a certain threshold or date. |
| Comp Points | See Comps. |
| Craps | A game involving gambling on the outcome of a roll of two dice. Singular crap an expression often heard following the dice roll. |
| Deuce | The number "2" in a pack of cards. |
| Deuces Wild | A game where the "2" card acts as any card in the pack. |
| eCOGRA | A body based in the UK that keep an eye on casinos and awards "seals of approval". Originally set up by casino software provider Microgaming which originally cast doubts on it's true intentions but has since deserved a good reputation (eCOGRA website). |
| Faces | The "picture cards" in a deck (King, Queen, Jack). |
| Flash Casinos | Online casinos that use Macromedia Flash technology to provide online gaming without a physical file download requirement. Normally have a much smaller choice of games than the download options. |
| JoB | "Jacks Or Better" Video Poker, the original and most common version. |
| Full-Pay | A Video Poker expression for 9/6 machines where the combination of Full House and Flush relates 9 to 6 (ie: 45 coin/30 coin payouts). See also Short-Pay or 8/5. |
| House Edge | Expressed as a percentage, this indicates the "edge" a casino has over the player in a certain game. A typical House Edge will vary from 0.05% to 5% depending on the game. See RTP, below. |
| Keno | A game similar to Bingo where you select up to 15 numbers (or 10 depending on the casino) prior to a random draw, usually from 80 numbers. |
| KYC | Every licenced casino has to agree to conduct "Know Your Customer" processes which invariably means a player, at some stage, will be asked to submit ID, usually through email. This will always include photo ID, proof of address and age and a photo of any cards used to deposit (with some numbers blacked out for security). |
| Manual Flush | Some casinos that deploy a "reverse withdrawal time" (see below) will allow a player to request a "manual flush" whereupon the casino will ringfence the cashout so that it cannot be reversed by the player. |
| Maximum Coins | Many games provide incentivised payouts if you bet 2,3 or 5 coins per line. This term refers to when you play the maximum allowed for that game for the denomination you select. |
| Microgaming | A software developer who provide a reputable and popular casino engine. |
| MG | See Microgaming. |
| Minimum Wagering Requirement |
The number of times or amount you need to stake before you can cash out a bonus or promotion. Sometimes referred to as PlayThrough and often includes both your initial Deposit and the free Bonus! You have been warned. |
| NETeller | An online "wallet" service used by many casinos allowing you to open an account and deposit into or withdraw winnings to a single account that can be used across multiple casinos. Normally a quicker way to withdraw from a casino but with percentage overheads whe you withdraw from NETeller to an actual bank acount. |
| Optimum Strategy | Playing to a strategy without making any mistakes or deviations from the strategy. |
| Paytable | A table showing each win combination and the payout. |
| Play For(4) Fun (P4F) | Virtually every casino has an option that allows you to play without gambling "real" money. This is it. |
| Play For(4) Real | The casino option that means you are gambling with your hard-earned cash. |
| Players Club | A loyalty programe operated by some casinos thet provide additional extras. The commoners name for VIP Club. |
| PlayTech | A software developer who provide a casino software platform. |
| Playthrough | The number of times or amount you need to stake before you can cash out a bonus or promotion. Sometimes referred to as Minimum Wagering Requirement. Unlike golf, it doesn't mean you have to wait for the next player to take his turn. |
| Progressives | Games featuring a progressive jackpot that increases until it is won. Many of the larger jackpots are accumulated across several casinos meaning a player at one who wins it can affect it for all members of other casinos in that group but an apology is unlikely. |
| Reverse Withdrawal/Time/Pending | At many casinos, they will still let you access your cashout during the time period between you pressing the cashout button and the casino physically processing it, allowing you to "reverse" the withdrawal and play with it. 90% of players hate this as it seems like a trick to get you to lose your winnings. reverse times can last from 4-96 hours deoending on where you play. See "Manual Flush" above). |
| RF | See Royal Flush. |
| RTG | A software developer ("Real Time Gaming") who provide a popular casino engine. |
| RTP (TRTP) | "Return To Player", in percentage terms (eg: 96.54%) Or more accurately, the theoretical return to player as no player will ever see the exact RTP in a game as it is designed to provide an approximation over millions of spins/hands. See House Edge, above. |
| Risk Of Ruin | A calculation detailing the amount of time it would take to run out of chips based on a deposited amount and strategy. Can also be used to ascertain the usefulness of a DIY enthusiast. |
| Royal Flush | Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten of the same suit dealt in one hand usually of 5 cards. |
| Scatters | Symbols normally appearing on Slot Machines that can appear anywhere and provide a win subject to the appropriate payout table. |
| Short-Pay | A Video Poker expression for 8/5 machines where the combination of Full House and Flush relates 8 to 5 (ie: 40 coin/25 coin payouts). See also Full-Pay or 9/6. |
| Straight | A run of cards that can be handily arranged in a sequential order with no gaps (ie: 2,3,4,5,6 or 9,8,7,10,J). |
| Straight Flush | As Straight but all cards are of the same suit (see also Royal Flush) and are a little bit embarrassed by it. |
| Signup Bonus | An amount of "free" chips given when you first deposit at a casino. Usually subject to Playthrough requirements. |
| T&C; (ToS) | The "Terms and Conditions" or "Terms of Service" at online casinos should always be read before playing. If you can find them! |
| Variance | The difference between what is expected and what actually occurs. Usually encountered when talking about the differences in playing Multihand games where the variance is higher than in single hand mode thus requiring the player to wager more to achieve the expected return. |
| VP | Video Poker |
| VIP Club | A loyalty programe operated by some casinos thet provide additional extras. The posh name for Players Club. |
| WR | Wagering Requirement, typically applied to terms on cashing out winnings from a bonus. See Playthru. |
| Wagering Requirement | See Playthru. |
| Wild | Refers to a symbol that substitutes for other symbols thus increasing the chances of a win. Grrr. |
