gaming

1 of 2

noun

gam·​ing ˈgā-miŋ 

1

: the practice or activity of playing games for stakes : gambling

After a six-decade absence, casino gaming makes its return next month to this Southern Indiana valley, once famous for luxury resorts that attracted the nation's elite.

—Michael Rubino

In the same way, casino owners almost never refer to "gambling," which brings to mind damp basements and dice, but always "gaming," which suggests Whist or Scrabble enjoyed in front of a crackling fireplace.

—Wayne Curtis

—often used before another noun

the gaming industry

2

: the practice or activity of playing games (such as board games, card games, or video games)

online/mobile/PC gaming

When most people think of computer gaming, they envision some things that aren't exactly politically correct. Things like blazing lasers, spattering blood and beheaded aliens. However, Internet gaming really does offer something for everyone.

—Kim Komando

—often used before another noun

You can get curved gaming monitors too, for added immersion in certain games.

—Jon Martindale

After looking through the gaming options, we decided on Quick Draw—a game that gives one participant a word to draw, while the other callers try to guess what the word is.

—Becca Miller

gaming

2 of 2

present participle of game entry 3

Examples of gaming in a Sentence

Noun

He does a lot of gaming online.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

For Macao, the benefit of hosting the NBA China Games from 2025 to 2030 furthers the special administrative region’s efforts to diversify beyond gaming. — Monica Pitrelli, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026

Other investments have brought the likes of AI firm Perplexity and gaming biz Creators Corp into the fold. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 12 Oct. 2026

Von Dutch and FlyQuest are giving gaming apparel a workwear makeover. — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 12 Oct. 2026

That’ll not only be used for 185fps gaming in compatible titles, but can also run at up to 165Hz throughout the system UI — a first for high refresh rate panels like this. — Dominic Preston, The Verge, 12 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

game entry 1 or game entry 3 + -ing entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1501, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing gaming

• tabletop gaming

Rhymes for gaming

• aiming
• blaming
• claiming
• flaming
• framing
• laming
• maiming
• naming
• shaming
• taming
• declaiming
• defaming

Kids Definition

gaming

noun

gam·​ing

ˈgā-miŋ

1

: the practice of gambling

2

: the acting out of a situation (as war) for training or testing

3

: the playing of video games