Learn about the most common terms used at online and land based casinos. This page solely focus is on popular terms used across online gambling industry.
Newbies in the online slot world could easily get misguided and confused about certain terms when it comes to playing them. That’s why we’ve prepared a comprehensive guide on the most common terms used in the online gambling industry to describe casino games, and the features and engines they come with so that you can enjoy a seamless gaming time.
| Term | Definition |
| 243 Ways | An online slot that instead of paylines, uses the 243 game engine, or 243 ways to win. Wins are formed when 3 or more matching symbols appear on these pre-set patterns. |
| 1,024 Ways | A video slot that offers 1,024 ways to win, pre-set number of ways to land winning combos on, consisting of at least 3 or more same-type symbols. |
| Ante Bet | This is a bet option which increases the stake by 25% or 50% but boosts players’ chances of hitting the bonus round, where the biggest payouts can be won. |
| Any Ways Pay | A slot game engine that, contrary to standard setup and engine, offers players the chance to form winning combos when at least 3 matching symbols land anywhere on the grid. This is compared to standard slots where matching symbols need to land from left to right on consecutive reels to create a win, from the leftmost reel. |
| Autoplay | Autoplay or otherwise known as Autospin is a game functionality which allows players to set a handpicked number of spins to put in play for their desired bet level. Usually, up to 100 Autospins are offered, for any bet level possible in the slot game. |
| Bar | A conventional slot reel symbol with B, A and R initials. |
| Bet Max | Slots often allow players to choose the number of paylines to activate, the number of coins and the value of those coins to put in play on each spin. Pressing the Bet Max button, players play with the maximum number of paylines active, for the maximum number of coins at the highest value. |
| Bonus Round | A special bonus feature which provides players with certain perks for a limited period of time or a limited number of spins. |
| “Book of” Slot | The term refers to Egyptian-themed slot games with the same mechanic and bonus rounds. Some examples are slots like the Book of Ra, Book of Horus, and Book of Dead. |
| Bonus Feature | These are “specials” that will happen during gameplay on slots games, often as wilds, scatters, free spins, re-spins, and more. |
| Cascading Reels | Cascades or also known as Tumbles and Avalanches is a game mechanics which allows winning symbols to be removed from the grid, freeing space on the grid for new symbols to land and giving players the chance to win consecutive payouts in a single spin |
| Classic Slot | A classic slot is usually a slot machine that comes with 3 reels, and only 1 payline and offers a classic fruit theme. Also known as old-school slots, today, the term is used to refer to an online slot game that resembles the first land-based slot machines ever designed. |
| Coins Per Line | The bet configuration field in online slots may give offers the chance to choose the number of coins they want to put in play per line, with a chosen value. If a slot has 10 non-fixed paylines and up to 10 coins can be played out per line, a player can choose, for instance, to play on 5 paylines with 5 coins per line, for a chosen bet value. |
| Coin | Coin equals money, but also means credits. |
| Coin in | The total number of coins ready to be used in a slot machine. |
| Coin Out | The total number of coins won off a slot machine. |
| Cash-Out | Exchanging credits for real money. |
| Cluster Pays | Cluster Pays is a slot mechanics where winning combos are created when a cluster, a group of matching symbols, lands touching vertically or horizontally anywhere on the grid. |
| Comps | Comps Are awarded to VIP Players, they usuallt come in form of money, holidays or other benefits. |
| Credits | Coins or Cash converted and displayed as credits. |
| Casino Demo Slot | A free version of a video slot game. |
| Denomination | Adjustable coin values. |
| Doubles | Multiplier symbols that double the winnings on a pay table. |
| Drop Bucket | Used to collect excess coins from land-based slot machines. |
| Drops | The total number of coins in a drop bucket. |
| Expanding Symbol | Expanding Wild symbols are regular Wild symbols which have been upgraded to expand and cover an entire reel they landed on, making the entire reel Wild. |
| Five Liner | A slot machine with 3 reels that allows player to win on up to 5 reels. |
| Feature | Extra Game in addition to the base game. EG: free spins or special bonus rounds. |
| Feature Buy/Bonus Buy | This is an optional extra bet players can place to get access to a special bonus round. It is a bet added to the regular slot bet, and it can hold any value. Bonus Buy options usually impact the RTP or volatility of the game, improving players’ odds of winning big. |
| Fixed Jackpot | A jackpot pot attached to an online slot which a player can hit when they land a certain number of special symbols or trigger a specific bonus round. Fixed jackpot payout amount is rarely beyond €1 million. |
| Fixed Value Slots | The total bet cannot be changed on these slots. |
| Fruit Slots | Fruit slots, or as mentioned classic slots, are slots that offer fruit symbols on the grid, along with the old-school Lucky 7s, horseshoes, four-leaf clovers, stars and diamonds, and sometimes even jokesters. |
| Gamble Option | Some online slots allow players the Gamble Option, or the option to gamble their wins. Successful gamble usually doubles their win or gives them access to other perks like access to a bonus round, while an unsuccessful gamble means everything that’s been won is lost. |
| Gigablox | Gigablox is a slots mechanics where matching symbols can land on any reel, combine and create a mega-sized symbol, sized 2×2, 3×3, 4×4 or 5×5. |
| Grid Slot | Grid slot is a slot where Cluster Pays mechanics are usually implemented, since it does not offer a regular layout of 5 reels and 3 rows, but offers an equal number of reels and rows to allow for huge symbols to be created on the playing area. |
| High paying symbols | The most paying symbols when they land on winning combinations. |
| Hit and Run | A strategy of placing 1 or 2 bets, win, and then moving on. |
| Hit Rate | Hit rate or hit frequency is the calculated odds on how often a particular online slot pays out on average. The lower the number offered in a slot, the better the odds of winning often. If a slot comes with a hit rate of 2, it means it pays out in one out of 2 spins. |
| Hold percentage | It refers to the percentage of money that the casino keeps out of players’ bets, also known as house edge. |
| Hot Machine | A machine that is due to pay or is paying in that moment. |
| Information Screen | This is a screen in the slot filled out with general game rules, explaining how the slot functions and what steps a player needs to make and settings to adjust before they start playing the slot. |
| Linked Reels | A special feature awarded in online slots where by landing a certain number of symbols, two or more reels will be synched or linked in some way, either displaying the same symbols or playing a different role that would offer special perks to the player. |
| Loose Slot | A loose slot machine is one that gives out payouts often, as opposed to a tight slot which delivers wins rarely. The payouts that loose slots offer, though, are usually lower than those tight slots offer. |
| LDWs | Looses Disguised as Wins or LDWs are slots with a math model used that misguides players, making them believe they’ll hit more if they played it. These are slots that offer multiple lines or ways to win but offer smaller payouts on one or more lines and finally, instead of winning more, players are at loss. |
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| Term | Definition |
| Megaquads | Megaquads is a slot mechanics allowing players to simultaneously play on 4 individual reel sets, usually offering many ways to win. Since the sets can eventually merge, and form an 8×8 grid, it can allow for up to 16,777,216 ways to win. |
| Maximum Bet | The highest number a player can stake. |
| Maximum Win | Maximum Win or maximum payout potential is the cap set on the overall payout the slot can deliver. Usually, it is from 2,000x to 5,000x the stake, but there are slots where the cap is set at 10,000x or more. The slot developer is the one that sets the limit as to how much a slot game can pay out. |
| Mechanical Slots | Mechanical slots are physical slot machines found across land-based casinos, otherwise known as one-armed bandits, with mechanical configurations and a lever that players use to spin the reels. Nowadays, they have been upgraded and no more levers exist, but players need to press a button to initiate a spin.. |
| Megaways | A game engine allowing reels to expand and hold 2 to 7 or 8 symbols per spin, allowing for 117,649 or up to 321,489 ways to win or more. This is achieved by a Cascade/Tumble/Avalanche system and random Multipliers, allowing players to create an unlimited number of potential winning combinations on any spin. |
| Multiplier Wild | It is a Wild symbol that has a Multiplier value attached to it. Its value applies to the wins made with the aid of the Wild in a given spin. |
| Mystery Symbol | Mystery Symbols are special symbols that, when landed, reveal a random regular-paying symbol on the reels, boosting players’ chances to create or improve a winning combo. |
| Multi-Line | Slot that have more than 1 payline. |
| Multi-Line bonus slot machine | A slot machine game with more than 1 pay-line and at least one bonus symbol. |
| Multi-Way | Video slot machines with multiple winning ways. |
| Mystery Symbol | They have no fixed value or function and often turn into any symbol. |
| Near Miss – Next Door | When a winning combo almost lands on a reel, or for example when you miss your number to the other next door. |
| Nudge | A Nugde is a special feature offered in online slots, where symbols can land partially or fully in view. When partially on the reels, thanks to the Nudge feature, the reels nudge and allow for the symbol to fully appear and hopefully become a part of a winning combo. |
| One-Armed Bandit | One-armed bandit, as explained earlier, is a term that described the land-based slot machines from the past, which had a lever that players needed to pull to spin the reels. |
| One Liner | A single pay line slot game. |
| Optimal Play | The best playing strategy. |
| Online Slot | Video slots that are available online. |
| Payline | A payline is the predetermined line across the reels on which matching symbols must land in order to create a winning combination and give out a payout. |
| Paytable | The Paytable is the table representing all the possible symbols that can land on the reels, as well as offering an explanation of how winning combos are created and how the special features and bonuses can be triggered. It is usually found in a tab when players press the “i” or the three-bar button across modern slots. |
| Payout | The amount to be given to a player after hitting a winning combination. |
| Pick ’em Round | A Pick ‘em Round is a special bonus round where players need to select one or three of a certain number of choices to reveal a certain special reward or trigger a more boosted bonus. |
| Pokies | Australian slang for slots games. |
| Progressive Jackpot | A progressive jackpot is a slot with a progressive jackpot pot is attached to it. That pot is shared via a progressive jackpot network and its prize constantly increases with every bet every player places who is playing a slot that is part of that network. |
| RNG | A Random Number Generator is a device in online slots implementing an algorithm that generates random numbers and combinations, making a slot game entirely fair and random. |
| Return to Player (RTP) | The Return to Player Percentage is the percentage of all wagered funds that will be paid out to the player at the end of their session. Say, a player has wagered €100, deduct the house edge kept by the casino, say 2%, and there’s a slot with 98% RTP. This means that the player, should they win all of their money back, will be able to get €98 instead of €100. |
| Respins | Respins is a special feature triggered by random or with a certain number of special symbols, where the triggering symbols are held on the reels and the reels spin again to offer players the chance to form or improve a win. |
| Rolling Reels | Rolling Reels is a mechanics that functions similarly to Cascades since it removes winning symbols from the reels and allows new ones to drop into the empty spaces, too, however, it usually comes boosted with a modifier, Multiplier Reel, meaning on each consecutive Roll, the Multiplier Trail increases the Multiplier value. |
| Select lines | The amount of paylines chosen in a slot game. |
| Short pay | A partial amount from winnings. |
| Short wins | A massive jackpot from a short play. |
| Skill bonus | A bonus based on a player’s skills. |
| Scatter Payout | A Scatter Payout is a payout delivered for a winning combo made with Scatter symbols, which is added to the payline wins. |
| Scatter Symbol | A Scatter symbol is one of the most important symbols in online slots, as it is a special symbol that helps players trigger a bonus round. Players usually need to land 3 to 5 Scatters in order to trigger a certain number of Free Spins or a different action-packed bonus round. |
| Second-Screen Bonus | A bonus round that is played on a different screen, and not on the main reel set, introduced as an interactive and engaging element to boost anticipation. |
| Split Symbol | Split Symbol is a special feature offered in some slots, where a symbol that occupies only one position on the reel can count as two or more different symbols, increasing players’ chances to land a win. |
| Special Symbols | Symbols with a special function. |
| Spin button | The button that initiates the gameplay. |
| Spreading Wild | Spreading Wilds is a special feature which when active, makes the regular Wild cover an entire row or multiple rows with Wilds. |
| Sticky wild | Symbols that land on each other to make wins or trigger bonuses. |
| Stacked Symbol | Stacked Symbols is a feature that makes regular symbols in the slot appear in stacks or groups to form a giant symbol and provide players with a bigger payout. |
| Stacked Wild | A Stacked Wild is a Wild that appears in a stack or a group and forms a giant symbol to provide players with a better win, all the while playing its usual role of a substitute. |
| Stake | A stake is the total bet amount the player has placed per spin. |
| Sticky Wild | A Sticky Wild is a bonus feature in online slots which, when active, allows for the Wild symbol to remain on the reels for the next spin. |
| Two-liner | Slot machines with two lines. |
| Three-liner | Slot machines with three lines. |
| Total Bet | The value of credits played. |
| Take cycle | Is based on a notion that a machine pays out according to a specific cycle, or an amount paid in by wagers. |
| Trail Bonus | A feature that unlocks levels for a final prize. |
| Tight Slot | A tight slot is contrary to a loose slot, meaning a slot that rarely gives out payouts. |
| Tumbling Reels | Tumbling Reels or Tumbles is a games mechanics that functions the same way as Cascades and Avalanches. |
| Turbo Spin | A feature that speeds up the gameplay. |
| Variance | The frequency of winning combinations in a casino game. |
| Video Slot | A video slot is a slot machine that offers variety; comes packed with an engaging engine, top-notch visual and audio effects, an interesting theme and a variety of features, contrary to classic slots that come with the fruit theme, 3 reels and 1 payline. |
| Volatility | The risk involved in a slot machine. |
| xWays | xWays is a special feature where when xWays symbols land on the reels, they reveal a certain number of the same random pay symbols. If more than one xWays symbol land, they all reveal the same symbol, boosting players’ chances of winning big. |
| Walking Wilds | Walking Wilds is a feature where the Wilds have the capacity to move to the next reel on each spin and reward players with a modifier before they eventually disappear from sight. |
| Wager | The amount you bet on each spin, the amount of money placed in a single or multiple rounds. |
| Wager Management | A way of managing a your bankroll. |
| Win Multiplier | A Win Multiplier is a feature where a given Multiplier value is applied to the total win for a particular spin or bonus round. |
| Winning Combination | A winning combination is the result of a combination of matching symbols that landed on the reels on the pre-set pattern. Players need to form winning combinations on the reels in order to get a payout in an online slot. |
| Wild Symbol | A Wild is a symbol that, much like jokers in playing cards, plays the role of a substitute in online slots. It replaces any regular symbol in the formation of winning combos, so whenever a player is lacking one symbol to complete a combo and there’s a Wild present on the reels, the Wild will participate in that combo and the player will get their payout. |
| WILD | A symbol that replaces/matches anything on the screen. |
