vigorish

noun

vig·​o·​rish ˈvi-gə-rish How to pronounce vigorish (audio)
1
: a charge taken (as by a bookie or a gambling house) on bets
also : the degree of such a charge
a vigorish of five percent
2
: interest paid to a moneylender

Examples of vigorish in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Businesses might decide to absorb some wage increases and other costs, such as fuel, without passing them all on to consumers and tacking on additional vigorish. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2022 In sports betting, the vigorish, or vig, is typically -110 for spread and total bets. Christopher Smith, al, 17 Sep. 2019 Moreover, Ernst is on record as favoring the privatization of Social Security, which means turning over the most successful government program in history to Wall Street, so that bankers can extract their vigorish. Los Angeles Times, 6 Sep. 2019 In terms of building regular traffic, state lawmakers have every urgency to ensure that customers pay no more than the usual 10 percent vigorish. Steve Rosenbloom, chicagotribune.com, 17 May 2018 Fezzik said the sports betting math works like this: 52.4% is breaking even (because the casinos keep a small percentage of each bet as a service charge known as the vigorish). Josh Peter, USA TODAY, 26 Dec. 2017 Our guest on Beyond The Stripes tonight is rising star LB Nick Vigil (pronounced Vig, as in vigorish -il). Rhymes with squiggle. Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati.com, 31 Oct. 2017 There was no need for a credit card reader, cutting point-of- sale system providers — and their vigorish — out of the equation. Daniel Roth, WIRED, 22 Feb. 2010 A more modern way to adjust the odds without the danger of a middle is adjusting the extra money, or vigorish, that bettors must pay. Victor Mather, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2016

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'vigorish.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

perhaps from Ukrainian vygrash or Russian vyigrysh winnings, profit

First Known Use

1912, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of vigorish was in 1912

Dictionary Entries Near vigorish

Cite this Entry

“Vigorish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vigorish. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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