jackpot
Americannoun
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jackpots
plural
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the chief prize or the cumulative stakes in a game or contest, as in bingo, a quiz contest, or a slot machine.
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Poker. a pot that accumulates until a player opens the betting with a pair of predetermined denomination, usually jacks or better.
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an outstanding reward or success.
idioms
noun
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any large prize, kitty, or accumulated stake that may be won in gambling, such as a pool in poker that accumulates until the betting is opened with a pair of jacks or higher
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to win a jackpot
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informal to achieve great success, esp through luck
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Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of jackpot
An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; of uncertain origin
Explanation
A jackpot is a pile of money won during a game such as a poker. It's also any example of good fortune. Originally, a jackpot was a pile of money in poker that accumulated until someone produced a pair of jacks (or something better). These days, a jackpot is any kind of prize, winnings, or success. If you get a high-paying job, you hit the jackpot. If you married a wonderful person, you hit the jackpot. Sometimes a jackpot is specific to a game, like the money won from a hand of 21, but any good fortune can be considered a jackpot.
Vocabulary lists containing jackpot
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Powerball prize has hit $1 billion for Wednesday night’s drawing, the highest jackpot of the year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
A family almost missed out on a £1m lottery jackpot after unknowingly ignoring calls and emails notifying them that they had won.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Rising bond yields increase the value of the optional annuity that makes up that official jackpot.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Monday’s drawing will be the 43rd consecutive drawing in the current jackpot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
The value of building the jackpot is now outweighed by each contestant’s desire to win the jackpot.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
Nevadans have been known to drive for several miles and wait in long lines to buy Powerball tickets, particularly when jackpots creep into 10 figures.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2026
And backers of AI companies have billions, if not trillions, of reasons to hope their gambles aren’t just once-in-a-generation jackpots, but once in a human existence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 18, 2026
The three largest jackpots were also from Powerball.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 23, 2025
In fact, in the case of the 50 largest lottery jackpots claimed to date, the prize has been split by two or more winners 10 times.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 22, 2025
More people have won lottery jackpots than flown in space.
From "Women in Space" by Karen Bush Gibson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
