Online Slots Glossary – List of Slots Terms

A list of online slot machine terms that every online slots player should know.

Bonus Feature: When playing on bonus slots, a particular combination will begin a bonus feature that will allow you to add to your pay out. It usually involves a game or free spins.

Charles Fey: The man who invented the first slots machine in 1887. This style of machine is referred to as a one-armed bandit.

Coin Size: The size of the coin that you play with – that is, 25 cents, $1, $2 etc.

Hit:  Term referring to a winning spin.

Loose Machine: A machine that is about to pay out a large amount of money.

Maximum Bet: The maximum number of coins that you can bet per spin. If you are playing on a progressive online slots machine, you have to play with the maximum bet amount in order to be eligible for the jackpot prize if you spin the correct combination.

One-Armed Bandit:  Another name for a slot machine. They are referred to this way due to the fact that they used to have one lever and they used to simply take your money.

Onsies: A slang term for a player who only bets one coin per spin.

Progressive Jackpot: A large monetary jackpot that increases with every spin. It can be won by hitting on a particular combination.

Pay Line: The winning line on an online slots machine. It is indicated by the pay table.

Payout: The amount of money that the machine pays per win.

Payout Percentage: The average amount of money that an online slot machine pays out per one hundred dollars. It is an average taken over the life of the machine so in the short term it does not have any significance on play or payouts.

Pay Table: The chart that is displayed on a casino slot machine that indicates how much money is paid out per winning combination.

Random Number Generator: Also known as RNG, this is computer software that is designed especially for slot machines. It ensures that all spin combinations are completely random and fair.

Reels: These are the wheels inside the slot machine, with the symbols, that spin. Where they land determines your win. Slot machines have varying numbers of reels. 3-reel or 5-reel slots machines are most common.

Sim Slots: A term that is short for simulating slots. It is otherwise known as video slots.

Static: This is the opposite of a progressive jackpot machine. With static machines, the jackpot is predetermined and does not increase with play.

Symbols: The pictures on the slots machines. These were traditionally stars, fruit or numbers. Today, slots machines have various themes and the symbols on the reels reflect these themes.

Tight Machine:  A machine that is not paying out large amounts of money.

Tilt: How we refer to a slot machine malfunction.

Wild: Some machines have wild symbols. These are symbols that can substitute for any other symbol and can increase your chances for a payout. For example, if you have a line with two sevens and one wild, the wild will count as a seven and increase your payout.