Casino
nounA public building or room where gambling games are played.
How to spell casino
6 letters · 3 syllables
How to pronounce casino
Say the part in capitals loudest.
What does casino mean?
- nounA public building or room where gambling games are played.
Casino in a sentence
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The casino stayed open until the early hours of the morning.
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He lost most of his holiday budget at the casino on the first night.
Where does casino come from?
Language of origin: Italian
The word comes straight from Italian casino, which is a diminutive of casa, meaning 'house'; literally it described a 'little house'. In the 1700s the term was used in Italy for a small country villa or summerhouse, and then for a social club or public building where people gathered to dance, listen to music, or play games. English borrowed the word in the eighteenth century with that sense of a public room for social amusement, and the gambling meaning gradually took over as such venues became known above all for games of chance. The single 's' is the trap for English writers, since many instinctively want to double it; remembering the parent word casa (one 's') helps keep the spelling right. The same casa root also lurks behind 'casserole' by a different path and behind the Spanish 'casa' familiar from everyday use.
How the word is built
- cas- (from Italian casa: house)
- -ino (diminutive suffix: little)
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