Betting Lingo
Sports Betting – Terms – Lingo – Jargon – Terminology – Wagering
So you want to place a bet on your team to win. You visit a sportsbook and what do you see? What’s a parlay? What are exotic bets? Our terminology guide should be sufficient to help most new bettors to come to terms with the unique terminology used in the online wagering scene.
| TERM | DEFINITION |
| Action | A bet |
| BM | Bookmaker |
| BR | Bankroll |
| Back door | A ‘cover’ that occurs in the waning moments of a game |
| Bad beat | Losing under unusual circumstances |
| Beard | A runner; one who places a bet for another |
| Beef | A dispute over the outcome of a bet |
| Bow-wow | An underdog |
| Chalk | A favorite |
| Circled game | A contest on which betting limits are reduced (injuries and weather are the primary reasons for games to be circled) |
| Cover | A pointspread win |
| Degenerate | A compulsive gambler |
| Dime | $1,000 |
| Dollar | $100 |
| Earn | Percentage hold |
| Exotic | Any wager other than a straight bet or parlay (also referred to as a proposition or prop) |
| Exposure | The maximum amount of money a sports book stands to lose on a game |
| Figure | Amount owed to or by a bookmaker |
| Form | A tabloid used for horse racing data |
| Getting down | Placing a bet |
| Handicapper | A person who studies factors such as statistics, injuries, weather and news to predict the outcome of games |
| Handle | Total amount of money wagered |
| Hedge | To reduce amount of action by wagering on the opposite side of a previous bet |
| Hook | A half-point |
| Juice | Amount of commission kept by the house (also referred to as vigorish or vig) |
| Laying a price | Playing a favorite |
| Layoff | Money bet by a house with another bookmaker to reduce its liability |
| Limit | Maximum amount of money accepted for one wager |
| Line | The odds on a game (also referred to as price) |
| Lock | A surefire winner (there really is no such proposition) |
| Matador | A cover that occurs in the waning moments of a game (also referred to as a back door cover) |
| Middle | Betting both sides of a game at different prices with the hope of winning both wagers (An example: if a bettor played Maryland (minus-4) and Duke (plus-6), and Maryland won, 100-95, he would win both bets — or “catch a middle”) |
| Mush | A bettor who is bad luck |
| Nickel | $500 |
| Off the board | A game on which bookmakers are not accepting wagers (generally because of injuries) |
| Overlay | A situation in which the odds on a game favor the bettors rather than the house |
| Parlay | One bet ticket written with at least two wagers (all must win for the ticket to cash) |
| Past post | To place a wager after an event has started |
| Pick’em | A game with no favorite (the straight-up winner also would win bets) |
| Price | The odds on a game |
| Puppy | The underdog |
| Push | A tie |
| Round robin | A single ticket with comprised of more than one parlay |
| Rundown | A list of odds on a particular day’s games |
| Runner | One who places bets for another |
| Scalper | Someone who bets both sides of a game |
| Score | A big win |
| Sharp | A sophisticated or professional sports bettor |
| Square | A novice sports bettor |
| Steam | Heavy action on one side of a game |
| Straight bet | One wager (as opposed to a parlay) |
| Sucker bet | Parlays, teasers or exotics (anything bookmakers use to entice squares to bet more) |
| Taking a price | Betting an underdog |
| Tapped out | Broke from gambling |
| Teaser | A sucker wager that allows bettors to add and subtract points from posted odds |
| Tout service | A company that sells selections on games (most in the United States are dishonest) |
| Underlay | A situation in which the odds on a game favor the house rather than bettors |
| Value | An overlay |
| Vigorish | Amount of commission kept by the house (also referred to as juice or vig) |
| Wise guy | A professional sports bettor |