- Terms covered
- 40+Across six groups
- Format
- One sentence eachPlus a link to go deeper
- Source
- Every Journal guideCross-referenced here
Every guide on the Bonu1 Journal introduces a handful of terms and defines them in context — which is the right way to first learn a concept, but not always the fastest way to look one up again later. This page collects every term used across the Journal in one reference, grouped by theme, each with a short plain-English definition and a link to the guide where it's explained in full depth.
Use it as a lookup, not a substitute for the longer guides — a one-sentence definition is enough to jog your memory or settle an argument, but the worked examples and context live in the linked articles.
Bonus & promotion terms
- Welcome bonus
- A one-time offer matching a percentage of a new player's first deposit(s), up to a ceiling, released in stages. See the full guide.
- Wagering requirement (playthrough / rollover): the total turnover you must stake before a bonus converts to withdrawable cash, expressed as a multiple of the bonus. See the welcome bonus guide.
- Contribution rate: the percentage of a bet that counts toward a wagering requirement — slots often 100%, live tables and fishing often far less. Covered in the same guide.
- Reload bonus: a smaller, recurring deposit match offered after the welcome bonus, on its own wagering terms. See reload bonuses, cashback & promotions.
- Cashback: a percentage rebate on net losses over a set period, commonly weekly. Same guide.
- Rakeback: a percentage rebate on the house's commission or rake taken from your play, based on volume rather than losses. Same guide.
- Free spins: a fixed batch of spins on a specific slot at a stake value set by the operator, with winnings sometimes carrying their own wagering requirement. Same guide.
- Bonus buy / feature buy: paying a multiple of your stake to enter a slot's bonus round immediately instead of triggering it naturally. See slot features explained.
- Expiry window: the time limit within which a wagering requirement must be met before the bonus and any attached winnings are removed.
Odds & fairness terms
- RTP (return to player): the percentage of all money staked that a game pays back on average over an extremely large number of rounds. See the full guide.
- House edge: 100% minus RTP — the same long-run average, stated from the operator's side. Same guide.
- Volatility (variance): how a game's wins are distributed — low volatility pays smaller amounts often; high volatility pays rarely but bigger. Same guide.
- RNG (random number generator): the certified software that decides every outcome on a digital game, independently tested to confirm results are statistically random.
- Provably fair: a seed-and-hash verification system, common on crash games, letting a player check after the fact that a round's result wasn't altered. See crash games explained.
- Gambler's fallacy: the mistaken belief that a losing (or winning) streak makes the opposite result "due" on an RNG with no memory of previous results.
- Expected value (EV): the long-run average outcome of a bet, calculated across every possible result weighted by its probability.
Slot & game mechanics terms
- Payline: a fixed pattern across a slot's reels that must be matched to register a win. See slot features explained.
- Ways-to-win: a win system that pays for matching symbols on adjacent reels regardless of row, without a fixed pattern. Same guide.
- Wild symbol: a symbol that substitutes for most others to help complete a win; variants include expanding, sticky and walking wilds. Same guide.
- Scatter symbol: a symbol that pays or triggers a feature based on how many appear anywhere on the reels, regardless of position. Same guide.
- Cascading (tumbling) reels: a mechanic where winning symbols are removed and replaced, letting a single spin produce multiple wins in a chain. Same guide.
- Multiplier: a factor that increases a win's size — flat, per-symbol, or climbing across a trail of consecutive wins. Same guide.
- Crash point: the multiplier value at which a crash-style round ends; generated by the RNG before most players could react. See crash games explained.
- Auto-cashout / auto-bet: settings that automatically cash out at a preset multiplier, or automatically re-stake every round, without manual action. Same guide.
- Martingale: a betting system that doubles the stake after every loss; it changes bet sizing, not the underlying house edge. Same guide.
Table & card game terms
- Boot amount: the fixed minimum stake every player contributes to start a Teen Patti hand. See Teen Patti rules explained.
- Blind / seen: betting without looking at your cards (blind, cheaper) versus after looking (seen, typically double the stake). Same guide.
- Side show (compromise): a private card comparison between two seen players, with the weaker hand folding. Same guide.
- Side bet: an optional extra wager placed alongside a main bet, usually carrying a much higher house edge. Covered in the same guide and in the game categories guide.
- Banker / Player / Tie: the three core bets in Baccarat, each carrying a different house edge. See live dealer games explained.
- Single-zero / double-zero roulette: European wheels (one zero, ≈2.7% edge) versus American wheels (two zeros, ≈5.26% edge). Same guide.
- Basic strategy: the mathematically correct Blackjack decision for every hand against every dealer up-card, which brings the house edge under 1%. Same guide.
Account, payments & compliance terms
- KYC (know your customer): identity verification required before a withdrawal, usually a government ID and address proof. See the withdrawals & KYC guide.
- UPI: the primary instant bank-transfer rail used for deposits and withdrawals in India. See the deposits & payment methods guide.
- Deposit limit: a self-set cap on how much can be deposited per day, week or month. See the budgeting guide.
- Session reminder / timer: a timed prompt notifying you how long a session has run. Same guide.
- Restricted states: Indian states where real-money gaming access is currently unavailable — see the footer of any page on this site for the current list.
Responsible play terms
- Chasing losses: increasing stakes specifically to try to recover money already lost — the single most common route to a much larger loss. See the budgeting guide.
- Self-exclusion: an operator-provided tool letting a player lock themselves out of an account for a set period or permanently.
- Tele-MANAS: India's free, confidential, 24×7 mental health helpline on 14416, which also handles behavioural addiction support.
Frequently asked questions
They describe the same fact from opposite sides. House edge equals 100% minus RTP. A game with 96% RTP has a 4% house edge — the same long-run average, stated once for the player and once for the operator.
A turnover target you must bet through before bonus funds convert to withdrawable cash, expressed as a multiple of the bonus. It's based on total staked, not your deposit or losses, and cycling the same money through bets counts each time.
KYC (know your customer) is identity verification — usually a government ID and address proof — required before a withdrawal. It confirms the account belongs to who it says and meets anti-fraud requirements; completing it early is the biggest factor in how fast a first payout clears.
A verification mechanism, mostly on crash games, where the game commits to a hashed outcome seed before a round and reveals it after, letting you check the result wasn't altered. It confirms the process wasn't manipulated in real time — it doesn't promise any session will be profitable.
The percentage of a bet that counts toward a wagering requirement. Slots often contribute 100%, live tables and fishing typically far less. A game contributing 10% means ₹100 wagered only clears ₹10 of the requirement.