side bet

Noun

side bet (plural side bets)

1. A bet on some aspect of a game or competition that is not the main bet of the game or the prize of the competition.
   • The fight lasted ten minutes and along with the championship of New Jersey, Banks won a side bet of $50.1938, Black Dynamite, page 96
   • Start off the dice-rollin' mats for craps to cee-lo / With side-bets, I roll a deuce, nothin' below1994, “Memory Lane (Sittin’ in da Park)”, in Illmatic, performed by Nas

   Synonyms:

   proposition bet, prop bet

2. An investment or risk undertaken by a company that is not part of its core business.
   • While this may reflect the relative low-key presence of small business representatives in Washington, I think it more reflects the basic prejudice of the small business case by the indifference and inattention of policy-makers to what they regard as a side-bet or peripheral issue regarding small...1979, United States. Congress. House. Committee on Small Business. Subcommittee on Special Small Business Problems, Impact of Federal Regulation on Small Business, page 24
   • They do this by attempting to ensure the success and development of a strong, secure but flexible business, but also by continually experimenting with 'side-bet' ventures.2009, Linda Holbeche, Aligning Human Resources and Business Strategy, page 412
3. An investment of time, money, or resources that reinforces one's commitment to a course of action.
   • It is assumed in these studies, for instance , that : (1) age "is" a side bet because the longer an employee is in an organization the more benefits he has "built up" and that (2) the nature or the correlation between age and desire to stay in the organization is used as confirming or disconfirming...1987, International Review for the Sociology of Sport - Volume 22, page 256
   • Side bets aren't always explicit, nor do they necessarily involve money. A side bet occurs anytime you do something that increases the consequences, or losses, of not staying with it.2014, Heidi Reeder, Commit to Win