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Action. Having a wager on the outcome of an event, usually a sporting event. Players are said to be in action when they have a bet riding on a game, race, or fight.
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Betting right: In craps, betting with the shooter that the dice will pass.
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Betting wrong: In craps, betting against the shooter that the dice won't pass.
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Boxman: In craps, the casino executive who oversees the game and who is seated between the standing croupiers.
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Buy-in: The amount of cash used to purchase chips before entering a table game such as blackjack, poker, craps, and roulette.
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Cage, or casino cage: The main cashier where you can redeem chips, coins, and tokens for cash; establish credit; or cash checks.
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Carousel: A group of slot machines, usually of the same type and coinage and often connected to a common progressive jackpot.
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Change color: Exchanging casino chips for larger or smaller denominations. For instance, changing 20 red ($5.00) chips for 1 black ($100.00) chip.
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Checks: The chips or tokens used in table games.
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Chips: Tokens issued in various denominations and used in lieu of cash at the gambling tables.
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Come out roll: In craps, the first roll of the shooter before a point has been established.
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Comp: Short for complimentary, designates the freebies extended from the casino to players: drinks, meals, shows, rooms, etc.
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Credit line: The amount of credit a player is allowed to gamble with.
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Credits: In a slot machine, the amount of coins accumulated by the player. A common tourist mistake is leaving a machine before cashing out coins or playing off the credits.
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Croupier: An attendant who collects and pays money at a gambling table.
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Drop: The total money (cash, chips, and markers) taken in by a table. The term is short for drop box, which receives all the money taken in at a table.
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European wheel: In roulette, a wheel with only a single 0 position, as opposed to American wheels with 0 and 00 positions. Players have better odds on European wheels, which are rare in Las Vegas.
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Even money: When the odds are 1-to-1, and the payoff equals the amount wagered.
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Eye in the sky: The casino's surveillance system that monitors and videotapes the casino floor.
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Grind house, or grind joint: A casino with mostly low table minimums and small
denomination slot machines.
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High roller: A big bettor, sometimes called a whale or premium player.
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House advantage: The casino's advantage on a bet, that is, the difference between the casino's payoff and the actual odds, expressed as a percentage. For instance, the casino enjoys a minimum 5.26 percent advantage on roulette, which means the payoffs are at least 5.26 percent less than the actual odds. The house advantage is 0 percent when the payoff is equal to the actual odds.
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Juice: Influence; if you have friends in high places, you have access to juice. If you are in high places, you have juice.
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Junket: An organized tour of gamblers who receive low travel rates in exchange for gambling a predetermined amount of money.
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Las Vegas Strip, or The Strip. The section of Las Vegas Boulevard from Sahara Avenue south to Hacienda Avenue, which includes most of the major Las Vegas casino resorts.
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Loose slot: A slot machine that pays off freely.
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Marker: Promissory notes or IOUs signed by players who have credit in casinos. Ordinarily players exchange markers for chips at the table, not at the casino cashier.
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Payoff, or payout: The payment of a winning bet to a player, most often from a slot machine.
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Pit: The area reserved for casino personnel inside a cluster of gaming tables.
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Pit boss: The casino executive who oversees the action from inside the pit; sometimes called a pit bull.
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Progressive, or progressive jackpot: The payout on a machine or group of machines that increases with each coin played. Some progressive jackpots reach into the millions of dollars.
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Rated players: Gamblers whose bets are tracked by the casino in order to determine the amount of
complementary that will be extended to them.
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Shill: A casino employee who gambles at the tables with the house's money, thus creating the semblance of action.
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Tip: A gratuity given to a casino employee.
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Toke: Casino personnel's term for a tip.
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Wise guy: This term used to tab members of organized crime, but more recently casinos use it to refer to astute sports bettors.
