Whether you’ve travelled across the US or just seen it on social media, you’ve probably noticed that people in different states will call things by slightly different names. The eternal battles between soda and pop, sneakers and gym shoes, crawfish and crayfish or cookout vs barbeque will likely rage on for decades to come… but what about pokies?

You might not have heard of the word ‘pokies’, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist. This guide will take you through the origin of the word, where it’s commonly used and what other words you should know about when it comes to this.

What are pokies?

Basically, pokies are another word for slot machines. The wording can be awkward, because it translates from ‘poker machines’, but with the rise of video poker machines, this can become very confusing.

Pokies are not video poker, but instead are your standard slot machines that can be found in pubs and restaurants. You know the type. The big cabinet standing beside the doorway and opposite the bar with flashing lights.

Where does the word pokies come from?

If this is the first time you’ve heard the word pokies, then don’t worry, it’s probably for a good reason. The word pokies actually comes from Down Under, which means that mainly only people in Australia and New Zealand use the term.

The official term for them is ‘gaming machines’, but they are colloquially known as pokies across most demographics. This is because of how common they are in Australia. A recent study found that while Australia has 0.3% of the world’s population, it has 18% of the world’s slot machines.

What are other words for slot machines?

Pokies isn’t the only international word for slot machines that you might not have heard of yet. In Japan, they are called pachinko or pachislot games; in the UK, they are called fruit machines or fruities; and across the world, some people simply call them one-armed bandits or AWP (amusement with prize) machines.

Are all slot machines pokies?

This is a complicated question. All slot machines are gaming machines, but not all gaming machines are slot machines. When you and I think of ‘slot machines’, we imagine a cabinet with flashing lights and a button to spin the reels, but not every regulator will class these as ‘slot machines’. Sometimes, the ones in the pubs are not technically slot machines because the mechanics and RTP are slightly different, but in layman's terms, they would still be a pokie, fruity or slot machine.

In the same way that all coke is soda, not all soda is coke.