Decoding Online Casino Terms: All You Need to Know
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The world of online gambling is full of terminology that can seem confusing to new players. Our experts realize that this can cause confusion among new players, so we created a guide with some key gambling-related terms and definitions that will allow you to navigate casino sites with greater confidence and understanding.
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Starting With The Basics – Casino Gaming Terms
We know you might think the list of casino gaming terms runs long. However, you need to know them all, as it’ll help you understand the game rules better. Moreover, knowing the terms in advance will help you quickly get the hang of playing casino games.
You don’t need to memorize all definitions right away. Start by learning terms relevant to one or two games you wish to play. As you gain experience, you’ll progressively pick up more lingo. Soon you’ll go from being a confused beginner to a knowledgeable player able to make informed decisions.
Slots-Related Terms
Slots are a game type where you must spin the reels to land combinations of symbols. They come in different themes and reward you with cash prizes, free spins, and bonus features based on the combinations you land across the reels.
Here are a few basic terminologies you must know before playing slots with real money:
- Paylines: It refers to the straight or criss-cross pattern connecting one symbol on each slot reel. You receive payouts if the symbols match across a payline.
- Jackpot: The fixed reward you can trigger by landing a specific mix of symbols on a payline while playing a slot game.
- Progressive Jackpot: It’s a kind of jackpot that keeps accumulating as more and more stakes are placed on slots belonging to this category. When someone wins the jackpot by triggering a bonus, the amount returns to zero, and the process repeats.
- Classic Slot: It refers to slot games with limited bonus features and winning paylines. Moreover, these games mostly have three gaming reels. To understand the difference between classic vs. video, check out our post on the topic.
- Video Slot: It refers to the kind of slot games that have five or more reels, excellent in-game features, exhilarating graphics, and captivating themes. Since they have more bonus rounds, the winning chances are also greater. They are the most common.
- Auto Play: This feature makes slot gaming easier, as you can select your bet amount and the number of times you want the spins to be played automatically.
- Bonus Multiplier: It’s a type of multiplier that, when triggered, multiplies your bonus round wins by a certain amount.
- Bonus Feature: These are in-game rounds you can activate by landing a specific symbol combination. For example, instant wins, re-spins, and free spins.
- Scatter Symbols: When you land this symbol (game-specific) across three or more reels in your game, you can trigger a bonus feature that enhances your winning chances.
- Wild Symbols: The unique symbol in a game that can substitute all other symbols except the scatter, to land winning mixes.
- Expanding Symbols: The symbols that expand to cover the entire reel, increase the paylines, and result in higher wins.
- Gamble Feature: A common feature in slot games, it allows you to increase your wins based on your luck. Most commonly, you can double your payouts or lose the entire win amount by using the gamble feature.
Table Game Lingo
Table games are a sought-after category at online casino platforms. These consist of pure luck-based games and options that require prior knowledge regarding game rules. To play the best choices under this type, including blackjack, roulette, and baccarat, familiarise yourself with the following terms.
| Gambling Terminology | Definition |
|---|---|
| American Roulette | The roulette game features a wheel with 36 pockets and both 0 and 00 additionally. Thus, its house edge is greater than European roulette. |
| Baccarat | A game between the dealer and banker, which involves betting on the hand closer to nine. |
| Blackjack | A multiplayer card game that requires players to get a hand higher than the dealer; however, not over 21. |
| Betting Limits | The minimum and maximum stake values for placing wagers. |
| Chemin De Fer | A baccarat variety where players wager against the dealer; the winner is the hand closest to but not over nine. |
| Craps | A simple casino game that requires players to bet on the landed scores on two rolling dice. |
| Game Shows | A sought-after gambling game category staged like themed reality shows with the dealer becoming the presenter and awarding prizes for gameplay. |
| Hand | It refers to the set of cards a player receives (two, three, or five). The total value of the cards determines your stance in the game. |
| High Roller | The casino regulars who wager large amounts of money on casino games regularly. |
| Insurance | An opportunity to insure your funds (offered by the house, other players, or bystanders) when you are a preferred winning option and go all in against a player |
| La Partage | A situation in which a player wins half his even stake if the ball lands on zero. |
| Low Roller | A player wagering small amounts of money on casino games. |
| Poker | A multiplayer card game that requires players to check, fold, or raise the stakes depending on their games. Then, the one with the highest hand value wins the round after the betting is done. |
| Re-Bet | It’s a feature to add a fresh bet back to the betting slip if its outcome is undetermined, and it works for multi-bets. |
| RNG (Random Number Generator) | A computer-based random value generator that decides outcomes at online casinos to ensure fairness to gamblers. |
| Roulette | A classic game in which players spin the wheel, bet on the value(s) on which the pin will land and receive payouts accordingly. |
| Sic Bo | A poker-based dice game consisting of two or three dice and allowing players to bet, bluff, or be truthful to win payouts. |
Understanding Bonus Types and Promotional Terms
Once you sign up at a casino, you must claim all their solid incentives to wager without pressurising your bankroll. So, you must learn about the most common bonus types and promotional terms you’ll encounter while gambling at online casinos.
Bonus Types Terminology
Players can expect to receive many promotional deals from casinos; using them will enhance their playing experience and lead to higher payouts.
- No Deposit: The kind of bonus you can bag just after signing up and before making any deposit.
- Free Spins: An opportunity to win greater rewards by spinning the game reels more times.
- Welcome Bonus: The reward that casinos offer their new players to continue on their platform directly after signup and before or after their first deposit.
- First Deposit Bonus: The incentive you can receive after making your first deposit post the casino registration.
- Welcome Package: The entire welcome deal (in one or several deposit instalments) that casinos offer the new players on their site.
- Reload Bonus: A weekly or bi-weekly promotion (cash rewards or free spins) that incentivises existing players to deposit and place bets every week.
- Existing Player Bonus: This refers to the promotions that the casino offers their existing players who play regularly.
- Cashback Bonus: A deal players can avail of to recover their casino losses partially.
Promo Terms Definitions
Here are a few bonus terms you must understand before grabbing casino bonuses, as you can’t claim the reward successfully if you don’t fulfil their corresponding requirements:
- Minimum Deposit: The minimum deposit amount one must add to avail of any casino bonus.
- Wagering Requirement: The number of times you have to wager a bonus fund before you can withdraw the wins to your account.
- Validity Period: The duration you can use your bonus to complete the wagering requirements and claim wins.
- Eligible Games: The list of games you can use your bonus rewards on and contribute to the wagering requirement.
- Excluded Games: The games on which players can’t use their bonus prizes.
- Wagering Contribution: Different casino games contribute differently to the wagering requirement; for example, most slots contribute 100%, and other categories have lower contribution rates.
- Maximum Cashout: The maximum amount of money you can withdraw from your casino account at once.
- Maximum Bet: The maximum stake value you can have in one round of a slot, table, or live game.
- Bonus Codes: All the bonus codes you must apply during deposit to activate a particular bonus.
Banking and Payment Terms Explained
You can use casino gateways for depositing and withdrawing funds before and after gambling, respectively. Thus, it’s important to know a few banking-related terms to conduct quick and easy transactions.
- Deposits: The process of transferring money to your casino account for your gambling sessions.
- Withdrawals: The process of withdrawing money from your casino to your bank account after your gambling sessions.
- Payout Processing Time: The amount of time a specific payment gateway takes to process your withdrawal request. It’s generally instant or within 1-5 banking days.
- E-wallets (Skrill, Neteller, etc.): A digital wallet service that allows players to store funds and transfer or withdraw them to and from other accounts.
- Cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Litecoin, etc.): The virtual tokens casino players can use to make anonymous and lightning-fast online casino transactions. Read more about this in our guide to crypto payments.
- Prepaid Cards: Cards where players store money and use it later to deposit funds.
- Payment Processors: An intermediary between the customers’ and merchants’ payment banks that allows electronic transfers between the players and casinos.
If you want to learn more about online casino transactions, our experts curated a set of tips and information for you to use.
Know Your Regulatory and Legal Terms
All casinos must abide by specific regulations to ensure safe and secure gameplay experiences among gamblers. Here are a few terms related to online casinos:
| Legal Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
| Licensing Authorities | A state agency that issues licenses and certificates legitimising an online casino. |
| Jurisdictions | The power to make legal rules and declarations by a governing body. |
| Blacklists | The casinos that are considered unreliable since they ignore their clients’ issues and don’t offer a suitable gameplay experience. |
| Whitelists | A gambling jurisdiction that conducts fair casino operations and meets all standards to ensure a great gaming experience. |
| Terms and Conditions | The rules and regulations players must follow at a casino to continue safe, secure, and efficient gambling sessions. |
And Now That You’re Ready…
Now that you’ve learned about the common casino-related terms, get ready to dive in and start gaming. If you don’t know where to start, you can give Ice Casino a try. This great gaming destination offers a great promotion for new players: 250 no-deposit free spins and a welcome bonus after deposit.
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