gambling
Americannoun
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the activity or practice of playing at a game of chance for money or other stakes.
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the act or practice of risking the loss of something important by taking a chance or acting recklessly.
If you don't back up your data, that's gambling.
Etymology
Origin of gambling
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.
Women and those experiencing loneliness were particularly vulnerable to experiencing gambling harm, according to Ryan.
From BBC • May 13, 2026
Southern Californians who appreciated that it was a shorter drive now can find gambling much closer, at tribal casinos.
From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2026
Prediction markets differ from traditional gambling firms by connecting two opposing bettors, rather than having bettors wager against the proverbial house.
From Barron's • May 7, 2026
It was gambling on a person’s well-being—tied to military conflict, regime change and geopolitical consequences that many traders scarcely understand.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026
If you’re an entrepreneur gambling on a new product, how do you weigh the intelligence you get from rational analysis of the existing marketplace against your own instincts about the potential of your new idea?
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
