noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   An activity characterized by a balance between winning and losing that is governed by a mixture of skill and chance, usually with money wagered on the outcome. uncountable, usually

   "He lost a fortune through gambling at casinos."

2. 2
   the act of playing for stakes in the hope of winning (including the payment of a price for a chance to win a prize) wordnet

Verb

1. 1
   present participle and gerund of gamble form-of, gerund, participle, present

Adjective

1. 1
   preoccupied with the pursuit of pleasure and especially games of chance wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

bettingbettingblack marketbootleggingcard-playingcardsharping

Example

More examples

"You've got to give up gambling once and for all."

Etymology

By surface analysis, gamble + -ing.

Related phrases

advantage gamblinge-gamblinggambling dengambling hellgambling housegambling jointonline gamblingproblem gamblinggame of chance

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.