devil's bones
An old and evocative slang term for dice — the small numbered cubes used in gambling games.
Definitions
An old and evocative slang term for dice — the small numbered cubes used in gambling games. The name captures the deep suspicion that religious and moralist traditions held toward gambling: dice were literally the devil's tools, instruments of chance that could ruin lives and corrupt souls. The imagery of bones is doubly apt, since early dice were often carved from animal bones. Today the phrase surfaces in historical contexts, period fiction, and as a dramatic way to refer to dice in any setting.
The old gambler rattled the devil's bones in his cup before making his final throw.
Comments
(slang) used for gambling.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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Semantically related
- devil's teeth79%
Slang term for dice, used particularly in reference to their use in gambling. The name reflects the long-standing moral and religious condemnation of gambling — dice were the devil's tools, leading men to ruin. The phrase is archaic and colourful, most likely encountered in historical fiction or discussions of gambling culture.
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(slang) used for gambling.
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(gambling, slang) A cheater's dice that contain metal slugs and are influenced by a magnet.