Language Activator – Gamble

Gamble/bet/have a flutter/back

gamble

(intransitive/transitive verb or transitive phrasal verb)

to try to win money, for example by playing cards or guessing which horse will win a race

.Eddie loved to gamble, and would spend most evenings at the roulette table

gamble away something/gamble something away

waste a lot of money by gambling

.She inherited $50,000 but gambled it away

Gambling

(uncountable noun)

when you try to win money, for example by playing cards or guessing which horse will win a race

He was against the introduction of a National Lottery as he thought it might encourage gambling

bet/have a bet

(intransitive/transitive verb or verb phrase)

to try to win money by guessing who will win a race or game

.I don’t bet very often

bet on something/have a bet on something

gamble money on the result of a race or game

.Rogers was not much of a gambler. When he bet on the horses, he almost always lost

bet £10/$100 etc on something

.Jerry bet $1000 on the game

place a bet

say which horse, team, competition etc you want to gamble on and pay the money that you want to gamble

.All bets must be placed before the start of the race

put £10/$20 etc on

(transitive phrasal verb)

to gamble £10, $20 etc on the horse or team that you think will win a race or competition

.I put $20 on the Cowboys to win

put a bet on something

.gamble on a horse, game etc

.I think I’ll put a bet on the next race

back

(transitive verb)

to gamble money on a particular horse, team, or person that you think will win a particular competition

.We backed a horse named Travelling Light that finished first at 10-1

back something/somebody to win something

.Uncle Barry backed Arsenal to win the FA Cup

play for money

(verb phrase)

to gamble money on the result of a game which you are playing, for example cards

.Are we playing for money here, gentlemen?’ he said as he approached the pool table

have a flutter

(verb phrase)

British informal to gamble a small amount of money, especially on the result of a horse race – use this especially about someone who does not gamble very often

.I’m not a heavy gambler, but I like to have a flutter from time to time

have a flutter on

.I had a little flutter on the Grand National and won £5

lose money on

(verb phrase)

to lose money by not guessing correctly the result of a game, race, or competition

.I lost a lot of money on the dogs last night

win money on

(verb phrase)

to win money by correctly guessing the result of a game, race, or competition

.I heard that he won a lot of money on the Superbowl a few years ago

:Practice

:Fill in the blanks with appropriate words

.N1. Roger ————- away all his money in a Las Vegas casino

.N2. He claims that he ————- the money on a dice game

.N3. I’ve placed a ————- on a horse in the next race

?N4. Is ————- legal here

.N5. Your Uncle Maury has a ————- problem

.N6. We usually have a ————- on the Grand Prix

:Answers

Gambled/ lost/ bet/ gambling/ gambling/ bet