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.
There are also treatment, support groups and other resources to help people with compulsive gambling and spending, and buying her a house will not necessarily make the problem go away.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 29, 2026
Prosecutors said Monday they would seek additional charges against Rozier in the sports betting case because they had developed evidence that the 10-year NBA veteran solicited a bribe during an alleged gambling scheme.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2026
One judge said the claimed difference with gambling “is sophistry to the nth degree. . . . It’s still the house.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 26, 2026
He told BBC North West Tonight his idea to do a drama on gambling was "always kicking around".
From BBC • Apr. 26, 2026
A typical example was a raid on a bar following a vague tip that someone was gambling.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
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.
