Bingo Terms

Glossary of Casino Words & Phrases | Terminology

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The game of Bingo is one of favorite pastimes for hundreds of thousands of people across the globe. Not surprisingly, learning the core bingo terms is one of the first things players need to do. From Australia to America and from Europe to Asia, Bingo halls are filled every day with people looking to have some fun, pass some time and possibly win some cash prizes.

Whether you play Bingo in live halls across your country or prefer to indulge in online Bingo games, you will want to know and understand some basic Bingo terms and terminology so you could better communicate with fellow players and understand what is happening.

Bingo lingo, as Bingo players call the Bingo terminology, is an especially important part of the socialization and fun factors in live Bingo halls and no true Bingo player is complete without a comprehensive understanding of this set of Bingo terms from this Bingo glossary.

Bingo Terms: Learn The Language Of The Bingo Halls

There quite a few expressions that you will commonly hear in the Bingo halls or see in online Bingo windows that you may not understand at first. Some make perfect sense while others are a bit more unorthodox and harder to understand by using pure logic. Without further delay, let us get into the specific terms of the game of Bingo and their meaning.

If you’re looking to put your newfound bingo lingo to the test check out the following articles:

Play-as-Many-Cards-Strategy-Bingo

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75 Ball Bingo

One of the most common Bingo games around, the 75 Ball Bingo is played with 75 balls and 5×5 cards with 24 numbers and one empty space.

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80 Ball Bingo

An invention of the online Bingo industry, 80 Ball Bingo is played with 80 number balls and 4×4 Bingo Cards with 16 numbers and no empty spaces.

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90 Ball Bingo

Played with 90 balls and 3×9 cards with 15 numbers in total, the game has three winning patterns, where a player can win by completing row 1, row 2 or all three rows of five numbers. This game is the preferred game among UK players.

A

Admission

In order to enter a Bingo hall you will usually have to purchase a set number of Bingo Cards for the upcoming game. Family members and other people who would like to watch will have to play the game themselves and join in the action by also paying the Admission Fee.

Any Way

When a winning pattern is selected in some games it may be announced as any way. For instance a letter E pattern Any Way, means you will need to daub the numbers needed to form this letter from either side of the card, not just one particular side.

B

Bingo card

Playing Bingo without Bingo Cards is not possible. Each player has to purchase at least some Bingo Cards before they can take part in the game and online Bingo sites allow players to purchase a large number of Cards giving you more opportunities to win. Bingo Cards are the tools of the game and contain various number combinations. The first player to have all the numbers in a winning pattern wins the game.

Bingo Board

The Bingo Board displays the last number to have been called as well as previously called numbers, allowing players who didn’t hear the number to see it on the display and those who missed some numbers to potentially catch up.

Blackout

This winning pattern requires a player to have every number from one of their cards called in order to win. When playing blackout, a
winner will usually emerge after some 70 – 80% of all numbers have been called, but players have been known to reach Blackout after just 40 of 75 numbers called.

Blowout

Also known as quickie, this Bingo format is played with a Blackout winning pattern and the numbers are called out very quickly, forcing players to act rapidly on each number called and making the game much more difficult to play.

Bonanza Bingo

Usually played as the thirteenth game of the session, Bonanza is a progressive jackpot Bingo game that requires each player to pay a small fee to play. The money is accumulated every week and the game starts with a 45 number draw, increasing by one every week, with players hoping to achieve a Blackout during the game to win the jackpot. As the weeks pass, more and more number are called during the Bonanza, and there is better chance of someone covering all their numbers.

C

Caller

In a live Bingo hall, the Caller is the person who calls the numbers out loud. The numbered balls are usually generated from the ball machine and the Caller simply calls the number.

Chat Room

If you are playing Bingo online, you will still want to socialize with other players in some way and your options will be more limited. Online Bingo Chat Rooms allow players to chat and communicate, turning the simple game into great group fun as our Bingo tips suggest.
Learn-the-rules-of-bingo

D

Dauber

In live Bingo games you are obligated to daub your own numbers, while online games can daub the numbers for you if you so choose. In either case, dauber is the ink marker with foam tip that is used to daub the numbers on your Bingo Cards.

F

Face

Face is an individual set of numbers in a given pack. For instance, you may have a pack with 15 spaces, 24 numbers each.

Flimsy

Flimsies are disposable Bingo sheets which are printed on a piece of paper, daubed during the game and thrown away after. Flimsies usually contain three cards on a single sheet.

J

 Jackpot

Jackpot is the main prize in Bingo games, usually awarded for hitting a Blackout within a specified number or balls called. Jackpot is sometimes progressive, meaning it will grow with each game that a Jackpot is not won and be awarded in full once it finally is.

L

Lucky Jar

Some live Bingo halls use this concept as another means of winning. Money is added to the Lucky Jar and all of it is awarded to the player who wins the Bingo on the Lucky Number which is chosen at the beginning of the evening.

M

Money Ball

Money Ball is selected in some halls before the game begins and if a player wins the prize on that Ball being called, his or her prize is doubled.

P

Pattern

The winning pattern or simply pattern is chosen at the start of a game and it is the pattern you will have to cover on one of your cards in order to win the game. The first player to complete the pattern can call Bingo and win the prize.

R

RNG

Random Number Generator is a piece of computer software that generates the online Bingo balls in the game of Bingo. Since there is no actual machine and actual balls in play, this software ensures that the numbers that are called are completely random and there is no foul play or chance of predicting the balls to come. RNGs are provided by major software companies and pass independent testing before they can be used by the casino sites.

S

Session

A Bingo session in a live Bingo hall is a set of regular Bingo games played in one evening or day. Sometimes a session will also contain some special games.

Special

Specials are special games of Bingo played in intermissions between regular games. They usually come at a bit of a higher price per card and will usually award the players a bigger prize for winning the game. Special Bingo Cards are sold throughout the night in the hall and usually not a part of the Admission Pack.
William-Hill-Bingo

W

Warm Up

Warm Ups or Early Birds are Bingo games played in preparation for the regular games of the evening. Players who come to the hall early may have some Warm Ups thrown to keep them entertained.

Wild Number

A Bingo hall determines what kind of Wild Numbers it will give. For instance, if the first number called out is 25, the caller may announce that all numbers ending in 5 are now Wild and can be marked. In some games, all odd or even numbers may become Wild after the first ball is called etc.

Wrap Up

As the session ends, the last game of the session is called the Wrap Up.

 

 

Conclusion

Bingo Lingo Terms And Phrases

The language of Bingo players is an extensive one, with dozens of phrases and terms to learn. While most players catch up with these Bingo terms through playing in live halls and online Bingo rooms, we hope that this Bingo glossary we wrote for you will help you as a beginner understand at least the basic terms and phrases used in the game.

If you are looking to start playing Online Bingo, make sure to check out our Bingo strategy page before beginning, to learn the best ways to play and beat Bingo as well as out Casino Bonus Comparison page, to find the best Bingo Bonuses available on the internet. Now that you have learned the Bingo Lingo you are ready to learn the Bingo Rules.