faro
Noun: A gambling card game in which players place bets on the order in which cards will appear from a dealing box, betting against the dealer (the banker). The game uses a standard 52-card deck and involves a specific layout for placing wagers.
Faro is a historical casino banking game. Players do not play against each other but bet on the outcome of cards drawn by the dealer from a special box. * Faro was one of the most popular gambling games in the American Old West. * The dealer turned the cards over one by one from the faro box.
- "to break the bank at faro": To win so much money that the dealer's bank runs out of funds. This phrase, though often associated with other games like roulette, can be applied to faro due to its banking nature.
- The legendary gambler was said to have broken the bank at faro in three different saloons.
- Faro bank: The dealer's position or the funds held by the dealer against which players bet.
- Faro box: The dealing device used to hold and dispense the deck one card at a time.
- Faro layout: The felt or tablecloth marked with betting positions, typically depicting the thirteen ranks of cards (Ace through King).
- Banking game: A game where players bet against the house (the bank), not against each other. (This is a category, not a direct synonym.)
- Pharaoh: An archaic name for the game, from which "faro" is derived.
Faro is essentially a specific, named card game. It does not have multiple distinct meanings outside of this context. Its usage is almost exclusively historical or in reference to historical settings, as it is rarely found in modern casinos.
-
a card game in which players bet against the dealer on the cards he will draw from a dealing box
