Roulette Terms Glossary: Every Word at the Table Explained

Roulette has a language of its own. Dealers call bets in French, the wheel and the table each have their own named parts, and a single rule like la partage can quietly change how much the game costs you. If you have ever sat at a table — real or online — and heard a word you did not recognise, this glossary is for you. Below, every common roulette term is explained in plain English, grouped alphabetically so you can scan to the one you need.

Where a term deserves a fuller explanation, we link to a dedicated guide. Use this page as a quick reference, then follow the links when you want the full picture.

A to B

• American roulette — The wheel version with 38 pockets: 1 to 36 plus a single zero (0) and a double zero (00). The extra pocket raises the house edge to 5.26%. See European vs American roulette for the full comparison.
• Announced bet — A bet called out to the dealer rather than placed with chips by the player, usually covering a section of the wheel. Also called a call bet. Common on European and French tables.
• Backtrack (ball track) — The smooth, sloped outer rim of the wheel where the dealer spins the ball before it drops down into the numbered pockets.
• Bankroll — The total amount of money you have set aside for play. Managing it well is the single most useful habit at the table; our guide to roulette bankroll management explains how.
• Basket bet (top line / five-number bet) — An American-wheel inside bet covering 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3. It pays 6 to 1 and carries a worse edge than any other bet on the table, so it is usually best avoided.
• Biased wheel — A physical wheel with a tiny manufacturing or wear defect that makes some numbers land slightly more often than chance would predict. Modern casino wheels are maintained and rotated specifically to prevent this.

C to D

• Call bet — See announced bet. The two terms are used interchangeably, though strictly a “call bet” is placed on credit without chips down, while an “announced bet” is backed by chips.
• Chips (value vs non-value) — At a live table each player gets their own colour of non-value chips so bets are not confused; you set their worth when you buy in. Value chips carry a printed denomination and are used for cashing out.
• Colour up — Exchanging your pile of small non-value chips for a few higher-value chips when you leave the table.
• Column bet — An outside bet on one of the three vertical columns of 12 numbers. It pays 2 to 1.
• Corner bet (square) — An inside bet on four numbers that meet at one point on the layout. It pays 8 to 1.
• Croupier — The French word for the dealer who runs the game: taking bets, spinning the wheel, releasing the ball and paying winners.
• Dolly (marker) — The small marker the dealer places on the winning number after the ball settles. While the dolly is on the layout, no one may touch chips or place new bets.
• Double zero (00) — The extra green pocket found only on American wheels. It is the reason American roulette has a higher house edge than the European game.
• Dozen bet — An outside bet on the first (1–12), second (13–24) or third (25–36) dozen of numbers. It pays 2 to 1.

E to F

• En prison — A French-roulette rule applying to even-money bets. If the ball lands on zero, your bet is held (“imprisoned”) for one more spin instead of being lost; win the next spin and you get the stake back. See French roulette rules.
• Even-money bet — Any bet that pays 1 to 1: red/black, odd/even or high/low. You roughly double your stake on a win. Learn more about even-money bets in roulette.
• European roulette — The wheel version with 37 pockets: 1 to 36 plus a single zero. The single zero gives it a house edge of 2.70%, far friendlier than the American game.
• French bets — The set of announced/call bets covering sections of the wheel: Voisins du Zéro, Tiers du Cylindre and Orphelins. Our guide to French bets in roulette shows the chip layouts.
• French roulette — A single-zero game played on a European wheel but with a French-language table and the La Partage and En Prison rules, which cut the even-money house edge to just 1.35%.

G to H

• Green zero — The single green pocket (0) that is neither red nor black. It is how the casino builds in its mathematical advantage; read why in the green zero and the house edge.
• High/Low bet — An even-money outside bet on whether the number will be low (1–18) or high (19–36). Zero loses either way.
• House edge — The casino’s built-in long-run advantage, expressed as a percentage of each bet. It is 2.70% on European wheels, 5.26% on American, and 1.35% on French even-money bets.

I to L

• Inside bet — A bet placed on the numbered grid itself — single numbers or small groups. Inside bets pay more but win less often. Compare them in inside bets vs outside bets.
• La partage — A French rule that returns half of a losing even-money bet when the ball lands on zero (partage means “sharing”). It halves the even-money house edge to 1.35%.
• Line bet (six-line / double street) — An inside bet on six numbers across two adjacent rows. It pays 5 to 1.

M to O

• Marker — See dolly.
• Neighbours bet — An announced bet on a chosen number plus the numbers sitting either side of it on the wheel, usually two on each side (a five-number spread).
• Orphelins (orphans) — The French call bet on the eight numbers left out of the Voisins and Tiers sections: 1, 6, 9, 14, 17, 20, 31 and 34. It is placed with 5 chips.
• Outside bet — A bet placed in the boxes around the number grid — red/black, odd/even, high/low, dozens and columns. These win more often but pay less.

P to R

• Payout (payout odds) — The ratio at which a winning bet is paid, such as 35 to 1 on a single number. See the full roulette payouts chart.
• Pocket — One of the numbered slots on the wheel where the ball comes to rest. There are 37 on a European wheel and 38 on an American one.
• Racetrack — An oval betting area, shown on many European and online tables, that mirrors the order of numbers on the wheel so you can place French call bets easily. See the roulette table layout.
• RNG (random number generator) — The certified software that decides the result in non-live online roulette. Independent labs test it for fairness; read how in is online roulette rigged?
• RTP (return to player) — The flip side of the house edge: the long-run percentage of wagers a game returns to players. European roulette has an RTP of about 97.30%.

S to Z

• Split bet — An inside bet on two numbers that share a line on the layout. It pays 17 to 1.
• Straight-up bet — A bet on a single number. It pays 35 to 1 and is the highest-paying bet on the table.
• Street bet — An inside bet on a row of three numbers. It pays 11 to 1.
• Surrender — The American-roulette equivalent of la partage: on a 0 or 00, you lose only half your even-money bet, cutting the edge on those wagers to about 2.63%. It is not offered at every casino.
• Table limit — The minimum and maximum you may stake on a single bet. Maximums are a key reason doubling-up betting systems eventually fail.
• Tiers du Cylindre (thirds of the wheel) — The French call bet on the 12 numbers on the opposite side of the wheel from zero: 5, 8, 10, 11, 13, 16, 23, 24, 27, 30, 33 and 36. It is placed with 6 chips.
• Toke — Casino slang for a tip given to the dealer, often by placing a bet on their behalf.
• Voisins du Zéro (neighbours of zero) — The French call bet on the 17 numbers around the zero: 0, 2, 3, 4, 7, 12, 15, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 26, 28, 29, 32 and 35. It is placed with 9 chips.
• Wheel — The spinning rotor and bowl that hold the numbered pockets. The order of numbers is deliberate and differs between the European and American designs; see the roulette wheel number sequence.
• Zero — The green 0 pocket present on every wheel. On even-money bets it is the pocket that normally costs you the bet — unless a rule like la partage softens the blow.

How the vocabulary fits together

Most roulette terms fall into a few families. There are the parts of the equipment (wheel, pocket, backtrack, dolly), the bet types split into inside and outside (straight-up, split, street, corner, line, column, dozen, even-money), the French call bets that cover wheel sections (Voisins, Tiers, Orphelins), and the rules and numbers that describe your real chances (house edge, RTP, la partage, en prison, surrender).

Once you can tell those families apart, the rest of the table makes sense. If you are brand new, a good next step is to see where each of these bets actually sits on the felt in our guide to roulette bets and payouts.

A Note on Responsible Gambling

Roulette is a game of chance with a built-in house edge, so over time the math favours the casino. No term, bet or rule in this glossary changes that — understanding the vocabulary helps you play informed, not win more. Set a budget before you play, treat any losses as the cost of entertainment, and never bet money you cannot afford to lose. Players in Canada must meet their provincial minimum age of 18 or 19.

If gambling stops feeling like fun, free and confidential help is available. In Ontario, call ConnexOntario at 1-866-531-2600, which operates 24 hours a day. The Responsible Gambling Council and the GameSense program offer resources and self-exclusion tools across Canada.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the dolly in roulette?

The dolly is the small marker the dealer places on the winning number after the ball comes to rest. While it is sitting on the layout, players are not allowed to touch their chips or place new bets. Once the dealer has paid the winners and cleared the losing bets, they lift the dolly and betting opens again for the next spin.

What is the difference between inside and outside bets?

Inside bets are placed directly on the numbered grid and cover single numbers or small groups, so they pay more but win less often. Outside bets sit in the boxes around the grid — red or black, odd or even, high or low, dozens and columns — and cover large groups of numbers, so they win more frequently but pay less. Neither type changes the overall house edge.

What does “la partage” mean?

La partage is a French roulette rule that applies to even-money bets. If the ball lands on zero, you get half of your bet back instead of losing all of it. The word partage means “sharing”. Because it softens the effect of the zero, la partage lowers the house edge on even-money bets to about 1.35%, the best deal in the game.

What are call bets or announced bets?

These are bets that cover a section of the wheel rather than a block on the table, and they are named in French: Voisins du Zéro, Tiers du Cylindre and Orphelins. You call them out to the dealer, who places the correct spread of chips for you. They are common on European and French tables and on many online versions that include a racetrack betting area.

What does RTP mean in roulette?

RTP stands for “return to player” and is simply the house edge expressed the other way around. It is the percentage of all money wagered that a game pays back over the long run. European roulette has an RTP of about 97.30%, meaning the house edge is 2.70%. It is a long-run average across huge numbers of spins, not a promise about any single session.