I Never Knew There Was a Word for It - Adam Jacot De Boinod [126]
there’s work down the announcement by one player that someone somehow is cheating
BIDDING WAR
The king of card games requires not just luck, but skill of the highest level:
chicane (1886) the condition in a game of bridge of holding no trumps
bumble-puppy (1936) a game played at random (of people who play no conventions)
yarborough (19C) a bridge or whist hand with no card higher than a 9 (from a certain Earl of Yarborough who used to bet 1000 to 1 against the occurrence of such a hand; the actual odds are 1827 to 1)
flag-flying (1917) to make an overbid that will almost inevitably fail, just to liven up the game
huddle (US 1934) a period of thought in which a player considers his next move
FULL HOUSE
For those habitués of the pack, there’s a fine range of nicknames for individual cards:
devil’s bed-post (c.1835) the four of clubs, held to be unlucky
grace-card (Irish mid 19C) the six of hearts in cards
curse of Scotland (early 18C) the nine of diamonds (diamonds imply royalty and traditionally every ninth king of Scotland has been considered a tyrant and a curse to that country)
blankets (1915) the tens in a pack of cards (from the rolling of blankets in the military in tens for the convenience of transport)
noddy (Gloucestershire) the knave
suicide king the king of hearts (as the fifteenth-century French picture shows him about to impale himself on his sword)
the boy with the boots (Anglo-Irish late 19C) the joker in the pack of cards
HIGH STAKES
When you start to bring money into the picture, of course, both dice and cards can easily lose their innocence:
shill a decoy player, allied to the promoters of the game, who pretends to bet, and is allowed to ‘win’ in street games of three-card monte; his successes are intended to lure the public into laying down their money
tattogey (underworld slang 1753) one who uses loaded dice to cheat
langret (mid 16C) a die so loaded that it shows 3 or 4 more often than any other number
DESPERATE BIDS
For some unfortunates, the impulse to win can stop being a game and become more a part of their lives. As the Aussies say, there are some people who would bet on two flies walking up the wall:
martingale to continue doubling one’s stake after losing in the hope of eventual recovery
ring in one’s nose to be losing and betting heavily and impetuously in an attempt to get even (like a bull)
fishing remaining in a card game in the hope of a vital card
bird dog a small time or novice gambler who hangs around experienced professional gamblers to pick up tips
nut the living expenses and other overheads that a gambler must meet from his winnings
MONTE CARLO OR BUST
For people like this, home games are soon no longer enough; a professional arena for their habit beckons; and there, of course, under the patina of respectability, pretty much anything goes:
ladder man a casino employee who sits on a high chair and watches for any errors or cheating by players or croupiers
booster a bit player in a casino who entices genuine players to bet (and usually lose) their money
top-hatting in roulette, the surreptitious placing of more casino chips on top of existing ones after the outcome has been decided
BINGO LINGO
Better to switch to a sociable game often favoured by the older woman, which comes with its own inimitable terminology. Two fat ladies (88) and legs eleven are well-known but there are many other traditional coinages:
1 buttered scone
6 Tom Mix (more modern: chopsticks)
7 Gawd’s in ’eaven
12 monkey’s cousin (from rhyming slang for dozen)
23 a duck and a flea (from the shape of the figures)
50 half-way house (1940s) (since there are 100 numbers available to the caller)
76 was she worf it? (from 7/6d, the old price of a marriage licence)
77 two little crutches (from the shape of the figures)
80 Gandhi’s breakfast (as he ‘ate nothing’)
ANORAKS
Or else give it