Glossary
If you thought a coverall was a type of clothing or an early bird was a creature you might find in your garden, this bingo glossary will set you straight. You can also visit the Bingo Calls page to find the nicknames used for the numbers 1 to 90, plus look at the Bingo Chat Terms if you’re baffled by some of the acronyms you’ve come across online.
A
Admission Pack - The minimum number of cards that must be bought to enter a game of bingo.
After Game - A game of bingo that is played after the main session has finished.
Any Way - A term used relating to a bingo pattern when players are allowed to find the pattern they are looking for upside down or turned 90 degrees either way. For example, an “arrowhead” pattern for 75-ball bingo could have the arrowhead start in one of two different corners.
B
Bingo Board - A display board to help players tell which number has been called.
Bingo Card - The cards which are used to play bingo. Each card will usually have either 25 or 15 numbers on them, depending on whether you are playing 75-ball or 90-ball bingo.
Bingo Marker - Also known as a dauber or a dabber, this is a special crayon or pen used to cover the numbers on your card as they are called out.
Blackout - Sometimes referred to as coverall, this is a game where you must mark off every number on your card to win.
Bonanza Bingo - A progressive form of blackout or coverall bingo where the caller will stop at a set amount of numbers, for example 48, and then keep calling an extra number per night or week until it is won.
C
Caller - The person who announces the numbers as they are randomly drawn.
Card - See bingo card.
Chat Moderator - A member of staff at online bingo sites who will encourage discussion during a game and bring positive energy to proceedings, whilst ensuring that players follow the rules and are respectful to each other.
Chat Room - An online meeting place where you can talk to fellow bingo players and chat moderators during games.
Consolation Prize - A reward given to the player(s) in some games even when there is no winner.
Coverall - Also known as blackout, coverall bingo is when players must mark off every number on their card to win.
D
Dauber, Dabber - A bingo marker, sometimes referred to as a dabber, which is used to cover numbers as they are called out.
E
Early Bird - Games which take place before the start of a regular session, where the tickets are usually purchased separately. Some bingo clubs refer to the first scheduled game as their early bird session.
Eyes Down - The traditional call to attention at the start of any game of bingo. Visit the Bingo Calls section to find out the nicknames for the numbers from 1 to 90.
F
Flimsies - Bingo cards printed on thin sheets of paper, which can also be known as throwaways.
Four Corners - A common game of pattern bingo where you must match the numbers in each corner of the card to win.
Free Space - The central space in a 75-ball bingo card which does not contain a number.
Full House - Covering all 15 numbers on a ticket in 90-ball bingo.
G
Game Board - A display board which shows players the pattern they are looking for to win that game of bingo. The game board will usually be attached to the bingo board.
H
House - A term which can be used to mean the bingo hall or online operator where you are playing. ‘House’ may also be used to alert a bingo caller to a Full House.
I
Instant Bingo - Any game of bingo where it is possible to see immediately if you have won a prize, similar to scratchcards.
J
Jackpot - The top prize that can be won on a game, a jackpot may be scooped by players for achieving difficult patterns or for winning within a specified amount of numbers being called. Jackpots are often associated with progressive games.
K
L
Line - Covering a horizontal line of numbers is known as a one-line bingo (1L) in the 90-ball game, while covering two horizontal lines of numbers is known as a two-line bingo (2L). Achieving 1L or 2L will net a player a prize..
Linked Bingo - Games which allow players from several clubs to take part in the same game at the same time, usually by broadcasting one caller’s voice across all the different venues. By bringing together more players, the prize fund for the linked bingo games is greatly increased.
M
Minimum Buy-in - The smallest amount that can be paid in order to join a game.
Multiple Winners - When there are two or more winners at the same time, the prize will be divided between the players.
N
National Bingo Game - A linked bingo game played daily in clubs across the UK, the National Bingo Game offers larger cash prizes due to the higher volume of players.
O
On - When a player has a card which only needs a single number for them to be a winner, they are said to be ‘on’.
One to Go, Two to Go - Often written as ‘1TG’ and ‘2TG’, these terms mean that the player has one or two numbers ‘left to go’ before completing a pattern and winning a prize. Some online bingo games offer prizes for being ‘1TG’ or ‘2TG’ at the end of a session.
P
Pattern - The shape that players need to cover on their tickets in order to win. This might be one-line, two-line or full house in 90-ball bingo, but the phrase is most commonly used for 75-ball bingo. In 75-ball bingo, the winning pattern may be a coverall or a specific design, such as a diagonal line, a letter of the alphabet or even a symbol.
Payout - The money given away as winnings. Approximately 75 per cent of funds received by bingo halls is thought to be paid back out to winning players.
Progressive Jackpot - A prize awarded in a bingo game for achieving the winning pattern in a specific number of calls. If no one wins the progressive jackpot, the value of the prize increases for the next game and will do so until it is own.Not all bingo games offer progressive jackpots. Learn more about progressive bingo games here.
Q
Quickie - A fast-paced game in which numbers are called as quickly as possible and players must try to keep up. Also known as blowout bingo.
R
Random Number Generator - Often shortened to RNG, this is the machine which is used to randomly select the numbers for modern bingo games.
S
Session - The designated time during which regularly scheduled games will take place.
Speed Bingo - Regular games of bingo, but the numbers are called extremely quickly.
T
Tickets - Another name for bingo cards, which are the pages you need to play bingo and which will contain numbers which must be marked off as they are called out.
U
V
W
Warm Up - A name sometimes given to the first name of a session of bingo.
Winner Takes All - A game of bingo with only one winner. The winning pattern may be a coverall.
Wrap Up - A name sometimes given to the last game of a session of bingo.