bingo

Noun (1)

bingo (countable and uncountable, plural bingos)

1. (uncountable) A game of chance for two or more players, who mark off numbers on a grid as they are announced by the caller; the game is won by the first person to call out "bingo!" or "house!" after crossing off all numbers on the grid or in one line of the grid.
   • He plays bingo with his family on Saturdays.

   Synonyms:

   housey-housey, lotto

2. (uncountable) A similar game or amusement in which participants tick off themed words, phrases or pictures as these are called out, or as they are mentioned, for example during a speech or performance
   • animal bingo (animal pictures), ABBA bingo (titles or lyrics of ABBA songs), buzzword bingo
3. (countable) A win in such a game.
   • There were two bingos in the last game, so the players split the prize money.
4. (US, countable) A play where all seven of a player's letter tiles are played, awarding a score bonus.
5. Great, sudden, typically hard-to-predict success; the jackpot.
   • An explosion of gay male movies has hit the U.S. in the past few months. Kiss of the Spiderwoman, Parting Glances and My Beautiful Laundrette, among others, have not only demonstrateed that the coming out story can be surpassed, they've also shown the movie industry that substantive gay portrayals...1986 April 19, Loie Hayes, Donna Deitch, “Leapin' Lesbians!”, in Gay Community News, page 8

Interjection (1)

1. Used by players of bingo to claim a win.

   Synonyms:

   house!

2. (informal) Used when finding what one has been looking for or trying to recall, or on successful completion of a task.
   • ‘Some big, hard-boiled egg meets up with a pretty face, and bingo! He cracks up and melts.’1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 31
   • Just have to pick the bfast, lunch and dinner I feel most like eating today and – bingo!2009 February 28, Megan Ogilvie, “Flex your plan for healthier eating”, in Toronto Star

   Synonyms:

   aha!, eureka!, got it!, that's it!, yes!

3. (informal) Used to enthusiastically confirm or validate another speaker's point.

Adjective (1)

bingo (not comparable)

1. (US, slang) Just sufficient to return to base (or, alternatively, to divert to an alternative airfield). (also written Bingo or BINGO)
   • Well, the old pucker factor went up about 75 notches at that point cause that length of time would put my wingman below Bingo fuel, plus the thought of sitting in an orbit several miles West of the Yen Bai […]1993, Red River Valley Fighter Pilots, page 40
   • The first pilot to get down to this bingo fuel state would call, “Banjo 4, bingo fuel,” or whatever.2012, Larry R Gibson, Recollections of a Marine Attack Pilot, page 54

Verb

bingo (third-person singular simple present bingos, present participle bingoing, simple past and past participle bingoed)

1. (intransitive) To play the game of bingo.
2. (intransitive) To give the winning cry of "bingo!" in a game.
3. (intransitive) To play all of one's seven tiles in one move in the game of Scrabble, earning a score bonus.
   • With IN on the board, he bingoed with OPERATING for 74 points, while Ann added the CO in front of it for 30 points.2009, Joe Edley, John Williams, Everything Scrabble: Third Edition, page 333
4. (US, intransitive, slang) To return to base.

Noun (2)

bingo (uncountable)

1. (obsolete, slang) Brandy.

Proper noun capitalized: Bingo

Bingo

1. A male given name.
   • Bingo! Bingo! Where is the rascal, I wonder. […] ENTER Bingo, r. 2, with glass of cream, […]1903, Charles Walcott Russell, “Act I”, in The Prisoner of Andersonville: A Military Drama in Four Acts, New York, N.Y.: Dick & Fitzgerald, […], →OCLC, pages 7–8
   • Our dog, Bingo, was determined not to be left behind; […]1945, Ernest M. Wampler, “Living in a Cave Home and Moving to Liao”, in China Suffers or My Six Years of Work During the Incident, Elgin, Ill.: Brethren Publishing House, →OCLC, part 1 (The Coming of...
2. Alternative letter-case form of bingo (“game of chance”).
   • We like playing Bingo, which is good because Beth is in special ed classes in school now, and they’re teaching her letters and numbers, and Mommy tries to help her by playing Bingo.2002, Rachel Simon, “Into Out There”, in Riding the Bus with My Sister: A True Life Journey, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Company, →ISBN, section “March”, page 71
   • Help her talk about the simple things she enjoys in life—her favorite television program, donuts on Friday mornings, playing Bingo with her friends.2009, Donnie J. Wilbanks, “Being a Caregiver”, in Applied Psychology in Health Care, Clifton Park, N.Y.: Delmar, Cengage Learning, →ISBN, page 90

Interjection (2) capitalized: Bingo

1. Alternative letter-case form of bingo.
   • The discovery of this woman’s body suddenly threw a complex of apparently unrelated incidents into an integrated whole. You grind away at routine, you collect a vast amount of data ninety-per-cent of which is useless and then—some thing happens and Bingo—the other ten-per-cent sits up like Jacky...1968, Ngaio Marsh, “Ramsdyke”, in Clutch of Constables, London: The Companion Book Club, →OCLC, page 125
   • I have this feeling of inadequacy because I can’t have any children. As a little girl, you’re playing with dolls and all this and you’re prepared right from when you are a little one. […] You’re prepared for this whole thing and then Bingo!—you can’t and you have to start thinking differently.1989, Kerry Daly, quoting Andrea, “Anger Among Prospective Adoptive Parents: Structural Determinants and Management Strategies”, in Clinical Sociology Review, volume 7, East Lansing, Mich.: Michigan...

Interjection (3) capitalized: BINGO

1. Alternative letter-case form of bingo.

Adjective (2) capitalized: BINGO

BINGO (not comparable)

1. (US, slang) Alternative letter-case form of bingo (“just sufficient to return to base”).