Bingo Glossary

This Bingo Glossary page comes to aid you as you make your first steps in the online bingo world. It contains bingo terminology, phrases and jargon, and explains their meaning in the game.

Moonlight bingo team hopes this bingo glossary will boost your gaming experience and pleasure, whether in a regular or online bingo hall.

Blackout – Also called Coverall. This is a pattern in which you must dab all squares to win.

Bonanza – This progressive blackout jackpot is commonly played 13th in the session. Before the beginning of the session, 45 numbers are drawn and marked by the players, in a different set of cards than the play cards. Normally, there's an additional fee of $1. A countdown begins at 48 numbers, or less. Every week another number is added until getting to 52 numbers or until the game is won. The card sales for the game determine the jackpot amount.

Caller – The man or woman who calls the bingo numbers.

Chat Room – A screen in online bingo sites, using to exchange messages with other players.

Coverall – See "Blackout".

Dauber – A pen with a tip made of foam, used to mark the numbers which were called.

Early Bird Game – A game of bingo which starts earlier than a regular one.

Free Space – The square in the middle of the bingo card, which you get to mark free and counts as part of your pattern.

Game Board – A display board placed above the bingo cards, which shows the balls in play.

Game Room – much like game halls, or online poker rooms, only for online bingo.

G.T.I, T.E.D. – When playing multiple packs in bingo, you can use this electronic daubing system, which requires a rental fee and is allowed only one per player.

Hardway Bingo – A straight line bingo, played without a free space.

Jackpot – The top prize, given to a winner of a specific, difficult pattern, within a predetermined number of called numbers.

Minimum Buy-In – The lowest amount you have to spend in order to qualify for winning prizes.

Money Ball – A pre-game drawn number. If bingo hits on this specific number, the player's winnings will be doubled.

Pattern – This is the shape a bingo player has to cover on his card according to the called numbers, in order to get a "bingo". A common pattern is a straight line, or a blackout.

Progressive Jackpot – When the jackpot isn't won, it adds to the jackpot of the next game, therefore grow every round until won. These jackpot bingo games normally require a separate buy-in.

Rainbow Pack – A pack of paper which allows the players to play for 3 or 4 different prizes simultaneously.

Six-Pack or Nine-Pack – Nine or Six numbers, marked as a "block" on one card.

T.E.D., G.T.I. – See "G.T.I, T.E.D."

Validation – The eligibility for winning progressive jackpots or jackpots in bingo games. The prices of these validations vary, all according to the number of played bingo cards.

Wild Number – A number, or series of numbers, which players may dab without them being called. All the odd numbers, for example, of the numbers ending with 3, etc.