jackpot

n.

1. 1. The accumulated stakes in a kind of poker that requires one to hold a pair of jacks or better in order to open the betting.
   2. A cumulative pool in a competition, lottery, or various other games.
2. A top prize or reward.

Origin: 1879

Poker, an American invention of around 1830, was the game by which the West was won--and lost. During the nineteenth century, poker helped shape our vocabulary as well as our character. In poker we learned to Bluff, making use of an innocent word from 1666, to ante up (1845), and to stand pat (1882). And we learned the pleasures and perils of going for the jackpot.

A jackpot is the betting pool in a version of draw poker that requires a pair of jacks or better to "open the pot" and start the betting. "The money up is called the pot," explained a gambler to an Indiana court in 1879, "and the man who holds jacks can require the others to bet him or to drop out." With a progressive jackpot the standards get higher: if a pot is not opened with jacks or better, then next time a pair of queens or better is required, and so on up.

Playing jackpot poker thus "jacks up" the quality of the competition and the value of the pot. If you "hit the jackpot" (1944), you have gained yourself a rich pot indeed. The jackpot increases the risk of staying in and bluffing with a poor hand because at least one player has at least minimally good cards. But it may also increase the boldness of the bluffing, and thus the size of the pot, because it takes a higher bet to persuade a player with a decent hand to drop out of the betting.

So jackpot has acquired two meanings beyond the realm of poker. One kind of jackpot is serious trouble. "You're probably already in the jackpot for taking a duty car out of Dade County," says a character in a mystery novel by Carl Hiaasen. But the other kind is the more familiar jackpot we hope to win, or rather to hit--in a competition, a lottery, or a lifetime.

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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has 2 meanings:

Meaning #1: the cumulative stake in a game (such as poker)
  Synonyms: pot, kitty

Meaning #2: any outstanding award

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - gevinst, uventet held, pulje

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    få gevinst

Nederlands (Dutch)
jackpot, pot

Français (French)
n. - gros lot, pot (aux cartes)

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    gagner le gros lot

Deutsch (German)
n. - Jackpot, Hauptgewinn

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    das große Los ziehen

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - συνολικό ποσό στοιχημάτων

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    πιάνω την καλή

Italiano (Italian)
piatto

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    fare un colpo grosso

Português (Portuguese)
n. - prêmio (m) grande

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    tirar a sorte grande

Русский (Russian)
выигрыш всех монет в игральном аппарате, главный приз, "банк" в карточных играх

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    сорвать куш, добиться потрясающего успеха (в каком-л. деле)

Español (Spanish)
n. - premio gordo, bote, (póquer) apuesta acumulada (para ganarla es necesario abrir juego por lo menos con un par de jotas)

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    sacar el premio gordo

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - jackpot, storvinst

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
累积赌注, 累积奖金

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    获得头奖, 获得惊人成功, 赢一大笔钱

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 累積賭注, 累積獎金

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    獲得頭獎, 獲得驚人成功, 贏一大筆錢

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 최고 특상, 대성공, 거는 돈

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    대성공하다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 積立掛け金, 積立賞金, 大当たり

idioms:

• hit the jackpot    大当たりする

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) مجموع المبالغ المتراكمه عند المقامرة ياخدها الرابح الاخير‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮קופה מצטברת (בקלפים), פרס בהגרלה‬

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