Ball Gate | Part of the ball dispensing machine, the one-way flap at the top of the ball runway which the ball passes under to enter the main playfield area. |
Ball Lifter | The mechanism used to raise the ball from beneath the playfield to the ball shooter tip. |
Ball Runway | The channel where the ball is launched up by the ball shooter to enter the main playfield area. |
Ball Shooter | The spring loaded plunger with a rubber tip used to launch the ball into the playfield area. |
Basket Bingo | Bingo game where "basket" prizes are given. |
Bingo Board | A display board, usually electronic that lights up showing each number as it is called. |
Bingo Books or Booklets | A number of different colored bingo sheets/cards bound together to form a book/booklet to be played one for each game at a bingo session. They are usually bound in the order in which they will be played. |
Bingo Card | A card containing 24 numbered spaces and one free space (blank), with which you play BINGO. The numbers are assigned at random on each card and are arranged in five columns of five numbers each by five rows (5 x 5 = 25 in total including the blank square). The numbers in the B column are between 1 and 15, in the I column between 16 and 30, in the N column (containing four numbers and the free space) between 31 and 45, in the G column between 46 and 60, and in the O column between 61 and 75. Players have thousands of unique (unduplicated) cards to choose from. Some manufacturers print unduplicated series of 6,000 cards. There are also series of 9,000 cards available. Hard cards and Flimsy cards have a series number printed on them. For example, card number 1252 will always have the same numbers in the same spaces. |
Bingo Marker | A crayon or ink dauber that is used to cover the numbers on a bingo game card. |
Blackout | (Also, Coverall) A pattern where you must cover the whole card to win. Usually 50 to 60 of the 75 bingo numbers have to be called to cover all the numbers on a card. But blackouts in as few as 43 numbers have been recorded. |
Blackout or Coverall | This is a pattern where you must cover all numbers on the card to win. |
Blower | A forced-air device that mixes the bingo balls and dispenses them to the caller who announces the number and displays it on a bingo board. |
Bonanza Bingo | A progressive coverall Jackpot that is usually played as the 13th game of the session. Forty-five numbers are drawn before the session and players mark them on separate cards and set aside. There is an additional fee to play this game, usually $1. The countdown begins at 48 numbers or less and go up one number per week to 52 numbers or until won. The amount of the jackpot is determined by card sales for that game. |
Breakopen | A multiply card, made completely from paper or paper products, with perforated breakopen tab or tabs. The game play area of the card is covered to conceal a number(s), letter(s) and/or symbol(s); some of which have been designated in advance as prize winners. |
Buyin | Buying bingo cards or an Admission Packet (see above). Converting cash into bingo cards. |
