Glossary of Bingo Terms
There are a number of terms and expressions you should know when playing bingo. Some are nothing more than jargon and slang, while others can cost you the game if you don't understand them. Also know that these can change from location to location, though it is more likely that the terms will remain the same. The short list below is the most common ones you'll frequently see or hear.
Hot ball
The term Hot ball means that a bingo ball will be randomly picked and denoted as a bonus ball. How this usually plays is that if a player bingos on the hot ball, the last numbered called is the designated hot ball, then the player wins an extra amount of money.
The amount of money a player wins when bingo'ing on a hot ball is determined by the rules of the establishment. Some places will give players the option when buying their bingo sheets/cards to play with the hot ball for an additional fee of $1. Other places simply include it in the cost of playing, so there is no extra out of pocket expense to be able to bingo on the hot ball number.
BINGO!
Bingo is the current name of the game. Over the years bingo has been called other names. So, when players get a bingo they may call it by other names. Some establishments may frown upon this, as it can be momentarily confusing, while most will think people are just having fun.
Common replacements to calling out 'Bingo' are.. Shazam!, Beano!, Show me the money!, Winner, winner, chicken dinner!, B-I-N-G-O spelled, or other favorite sayings
Floating
The term Floating usually implies one of two things. That the game pattern you get cannot be connected to one of the four corners of the game card, or the other understanding, is that it can be anywhere on the card. To be sure see the example provided for you at place you are playing bingo.
Hardway
A hardway bingo usually implies that the pattern you get cannot include the free space, rather it needs to exclude it from the patter. An example would be the game 'Hardway Six Pack' where you need a pattern of six (two rows of columns of three). See below.
Crazy
Crazy denotes that a game pattern isn't required to be completed in a static, same orientation, as shown on the game sheet. A good example of this would be with the letter T. Normally the letter T is in an upright position, but if the game is called a Crazy T, then the bingo player can win by covering spaces in the pattern of the letter T, in any direction / orientation. See below for an example of the Letter L.
The game Crazy Kite and Crazy Letter L, are some of the most common bingo patterns in which the pattern can face different directions.
I'm on!
When you hear people say I'm on, or a variation like I'm on like Donkey Kong, or I'm on like Megatron, or I'm on, so the rest of you get off, know that they are one number away from getting a bingo. People that are unfamiliar with this will say that they are also on, but may need many numbers still to get a bingo.
Pull tabs or Flash games
Pull tabs are those tickets that are sold throughout the regular bingo games by staff walking the floor. Most pull tabs are $1 each. Pull tabs are also commonly called Flash games and Rippers. Pull tabs pay anywhere from $50 to $1199 depending on which one you play.
One type of pull tabs are those that have guaranteed numbers, allowing everyone who buys one to play in the game when it is called. These games usually pay $100 for the winner.
Another type of pull tabs are those that do not have guaranteed numbers! This is usually the case with majority of them. This is why some people also refer to them as chance games. However, because they the odds of getting numbers on the pull tab are less than guaranteed, these games will pay out more money than the guaranteed number pull tabs. These typically pay from $200 to $1199. The greater the payout for that pull tab game, usually the less your chances are of you actually opening the pull tab and finding numbers on it to be able to play the game. The formula is that if the pull tab doesn't have guaranteed numbers, then players will buy more looking for the pull tabs with numbers. The more sold, the larger the payout.
Most non guaranteed number pull tabs run at a ratio of you finding numbers on them in about 1 in every 10 pull tabs. The pull tabs that you open that don't have numbers will usually have a message like 'thanks for playing, or a picture relating to the game theme.
Pull tabs are also called rippers. The name players refer to them as is likely to be different from location to location.