definitions

one-armed bandit

or onearm bandit

[ wuhn-ahrmd ]
/ ˈwʌnˌɑrmd /
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR one-armed bandit ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Informal.

slot machine(def 1).

RELATED CONTENT

Fiancé vs. Fiancée: Which One Is Which?Fiancé and fiancée are different words?
READ MORE
What’s The Word for More Than One Software?The word software is a mass noun because it can be used to refer to a mass (or nonspecific number) of computing programs or products.
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

slot

Nearby words

one thousand guineas, one up, one way or another, one-a-cat, one-acter, one-armed bandit, one-bagger, one-base hit, one-dimensional, one-down, one-eighty

Origin of one-armed bandit

An Americanism dating back to 1935–40
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for one-armed bandit

one-armed bandit

noun

a fruit machine operated by pulling down a lever at one side
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with one-armed bandit

one-armed bandit

A slot machine, as in It's amazing how many people think they can make money playing a one-armed bandit. This term refers to both appearance and function: the operating lever looks like an arm, and the machine in effect robs players, since it “wins” and keeps the player's money in an overwhelming majority of instances. [c. 1930]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.