Most slot jargon falls into four groups: how the reels pay (paylines, ways, clusters), what the maths says (RTP, house edge, volatility), what the features do (wilds, scatters, free spins, multipliers) and the slang players use for what happens on screen (dead spins, dry spells). The glossary below defines each term in plain English and says what it means for your money, with sums in Kenyan shillings.

Where to find these terms in a game

Every online slot has an info or paytable screen, usually behind an "i" or menu icon. It lists the symbol values, the payline diagrams or ways count, the rules of each feature and, at most casinos, the RTP of the version you are playing. Reading it for two minutes before you spin answers most of the questions this glossary covers. You can open it in the free demo without spending anything.

For the longer explanations, see our guides to RTP, volatility, paylines, the random number generator and wagering requirements. Feature collections such as Megaways and wild symbols list the slots that use each mechanic.