Betting or staking of something of value on the outcome of a game or event.
Commonly associated with gambling are horse racing , boxing , numerous playing-card and dice games, cockfighting , jai alai , recreational billiards and darts , bingo , and lottery . In most gambling games it is customary to express the idea of probability in terms of "odds against winning." In the U.S. casino gambling, once highly restricted, is now legal in many states, and lotteries are employed by many states to raise revenues. The Internet has also become a venue for placing bets. See also bookmaking ; casino .