1: Kelly's eyeArmy slang that soldiers carried into the game. Some lists tie it to the outlaw Ned Kelly and others say there is no link.
2: One little duckThe figure 2 looks like a duck on the water. Also called: Me and you.
3: Cup of teaRhymes with three. Also called: You and me.
4: Knock at the doorRhymes with four.
5: Man aliveRhymes with five.
6: Half a dozenSix is half of twelve. Tom Mix, a cowboy star of silent films, gave older callers a rhyme for six. Also called: Tom Mix.
7: Lucky sevenSeven is counted a lucky number in many cultures.
8: Garden gateRhymes with eight.
9: Doctor's ordersNumber nine was the pill that British army doctors handed out, a laxative.
Numbers 10 to 19
10: Prime minister's denNumber 10 Downing Street is the British prime minister's address, so callers say the first name of whoever lives there, and the call changes with each new one.
11: Legs elevenThe two ones stand like a pair of legs. Some halls now ban the old wolf-whistle reply, so leave it out.
12: One dozenTwelve make a dozen.
13: Unlucky for someThirteen is widely counted an unlucky number.
14: Valentine's DayValentine's Day falls on February 14.
15: Young and keenRhymes with fifteen.
16: Sweet sixteenA sixteenth birthday is known as a sweet sixteen. Also called: Never been kissed.
17: Dancing queenFrom the ABBA song, whose dancing queen is "only seventeen".
18: Coming of ageIn the United Kingdom, people come of age at eighteen.
19: Goodbye teensNineteen is the last of the teenage years.
Numbers 20 to 29
20: One scoreA score is an old word for twenty.
21: Key of the doorTwenty-one was the traditional coming of age. The royal salute is the 21-gun salute. Also called: Royal salute.
22: Two little ducksTwo figure 2s look like a pair of ducks. The room answers "quack, quack".
23: Thee and meRhymes with twenty-three. The variant is the opening of Psalm 23. Also called: The Lord is my shepherd.
24: Two dozenTwo twelves make twenty-four.
25: Duck and diveRhymes with twenty-five, and the 2 is the duck.
26: Pick and mixRhymes with twenty-six. Half a crown was two shillings and sixpence in old British money, said as "two and six". Also called: Half a crown.
27: Gateway to heavenRhymes with twenty-seven. In the variant the 2 is the duck and the 7 is the crutch. Also called: Duck and a crutch.
28: In a state"Two and eight" rhymes, in slang, with a state, meaning a fluster.
29: Rise and shineRhymes with twenty-nine.
Numbers 30 to 39
30: Dirty GertieA rhyme for thirty, helped along by "Dirty Gertie from Bizerte", a soldiers' song of the Second World War. Clean call: Early birdie.
31: Get up and runRhymes with thirty-one.
32: Buckle my shoeRhymes with thirty-two, borrowed from the counting rhyme "One, two, buckle my shoe".
33: All the threesTwo threes side by side. Both variants rhyme with thirty-three. Also called: Dirty knee, Fish, chips and peas.
34: Ask for moreRhymes with thirty-four.
35: Jump and jiveRhymes with thirty-five. Jump and jive is a dance step.
36: Three dozenThree twelves make thirty-six.
37: More than elevenRhymes with thirty-seven, and is true as well.
38: Christmas cakeRhymes with thirty-eight.
39: StepsFrom The Thirty-Nine Steps, John Buchan's adventure novel, which was filmed more than once.
Numbers 40 to 49
40: Life beginsFrom the saying that life begins at forty. Also called: Naughty forty.
41: Time for funRhymes with forty-one.
42: Winnie the PoohRhymes with forty-two, after the bear in A. A. Milne's stories.
43: Down on your kneesRhymes with forty-three.
44: Droopy drawersRhymes with "all the fours". Drawers are underwear, so younger rooms may like the plain line better. Clean call: All the fours.
45: Halfway thereForty-five is half of 90, the top number in the British game.
46: Up to tricksRhymes with forty-six.
47: Four and sevenThe two digits, read one at a time.
48: Four dozenFour twelves make forty-eight.
49: PCFrom The Adventures of PC 49, a BBC radio series about a police constable.
Numbers 50 to 59
50: Half a centuryFifty is half of a hundred. The bullseye on a dartboard scores 50. Also called: It's a bullseye.
51: Tweak of the thumbRhymes with fifty-one.
52: Deck of cardsA full deck holds 52 cards. Danny La Rue was a stage entertainer whose name rhymes with any number ending in two, and chicken vindaloo arrived with the Butlins holiday camps in 2003. Also called: Weeks in a year, Danny La Rue, Chicken vindaloo.
53: Stuck in the treeRhymes with fifty-three. In the variant, 53 is the racing number painted on Herbie, the film car, and the room answers "beep beep". Also called: Here comes Herbie.
54: Man at the doorBoth lines rhyme with fifty-four. Also called: Clean the floor.
55: All the fivesTwo fives side by side. They also resemble two snakes, which gives the rhyming variant. Also called: Snakes alive.
56: Was she worth it?Five shillings and sixpence was once the price of a marriage licence, and the room shouts back "every penny". The variant is the old number of the Glasgow to Shotts bus. Also called: Shotts bus. Clean call: Pick up sticks.
57: Heinz varietiesFrom the "57 varieties" slogan on Heinz labels.
58: Make them waitRhymes with fifty-eight, and the caller pauses before saying it.
59: Brighton line"Five and nine" rhymes with the Brighton line, the railway from London to the coast. The lists disagree about any deeper story.
Numbers 60 to 69
60: Five dozenFive twelves make sixty.
61: Baker's bunRhymes with sixty-one.
62: Tickety-booRhymes with sixty-two. Tickety-boo is British slang for "in good order". Also called: Turn the screw.
63: Tickle meRhymes with sixty-three.
64: Almost retiredOne year short of 65, for many years the retirement age for men in Britain. Also called: Red raw.
65: Old age pensionSixty-five was for many years the retirement age for men in Britain. Also called: Stop work.
66: Clickety clickRhymes with sixty-six.
67: Stairway to heavenBoth lines rhyme with sixty-seven. Also called: Made in heaven.
68: Pick a mateRhymes with sixty-eight. Also called: Saving grace.
69: Either way upTurn the number upside down and it still reads 69.
Numbers 70 to 79
70: Three score and tenThree twenties and a ten.
71: Bang on the drumRhymes with seventy-one.
72: Six dozenSix twelves make seventy-two. Also called: Danny La Rue.
73: Queen beeBoth lines rhyme with seventy-three. Also called: Under the tree.
74: Hit the floorBoth lines rhyme with seventy-four. Also called: Candy store.
75: Strive and striveRhymes with seventy-five.
76: TrombonesFrom "Seventy-Six Trombones", the marching song in the musical The Music Man.
77: Two little crutchesEach 7 looks like a crutch. The variant comes from the television series 77 Sunset Strip. Also called: Sunset Strip.
78: Heaven's gateRhymes with seventy-eight. Twice 39 is 78, which gives the variant. Also called: 39 more steps.
79: One more timeRhymes with seventy-nine.
Numbers 80 to 90
80: Eight and blankAn 8 and a nothing.
81: Stop and runRhymes with eighty-one.
82: Straight on throughRhymes with eighty-two.
83: Time for teaRhymes with eighty-three.
84: Seven dozenSeven twelves make eighty-four. The variant rhymes. Also called: Give me more.
85: Staying aliveRhymes with eighty-five.
86: Between the sticksRhymes with eighty-six.
87: Torquay in DevonRhymes with eighty-seven. Torquay is a seaside town in the English county of Devon.
88: Two fat ladiesFrom the round shape of the two eights. It pokes fun at a body, so the list gives a clean line as well. Clean call: Two snowmen.
89: Nearly thereOne short of 90. Also called: Almost there.
90: Top of the shopNinety is the highest number in the British game.
How this list was compiled: One row for each number from 1 to 90, put together on 2026-09-19. The calls are British folk sayings with no author. Every main call and every variant was checked against the table at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_bingo_nicknames and had to appear on at least one more published list: the 1 to 90 list on the Wink Bingo site (the-bingo-game/bingo-calls page), the lingo list at https://www.bingorental.co.uk/bingo-lingo/ or the BBC's 2002 and 2003 pieces on bingo calls. The lists each call was found on are recorded with it. Calls found on one list only were left out, and so were calls that lean on sex or drink or mock a named living person. An origin is given only where two lists agree on it, or where it is plain from the words (a rhyme, the shape of the digits, a sum). The explanations are in our own words. The four clean calls (for 30, 44, 56 and 88) are ours and are not traditional. Column letters for 1 to 75 follow the standard American card as described at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bingo_(American_version) on the same date. Licence: own work
Bingo terms and slang
Boards, cards and kit
CallerThe host who draws each number, says it aloud and checks a winning card.
FlashboardThe big lit board that shows every number called so far, large enough to read from the back of the hall.
75-ball bingoThe American game: numbers 1 to 75 and a square card of 25 spaces.
90-ball bingoThe British game: numbers 1 to 90 and a ticket of three rows.
B-I-N-G-O columnsOn a 75-ball card, B holds 1 to 15, I holds 16 to 30, N holds 31 to 45, G holds 46 to 60 and O holds 61 to 75.
Free spaceThe middle square of a 75-ball card. It counts as covered before the first call.
TicketA 90-ball card: 27 spaces in nine columns and three rows, with five numbers and four blanks in each row.
StripSix 90-ball tickets printed together. Between them they hold every number from 1 to 90, so a player marks one on every call.
DauberThe fat ink marker players use to mark a number. British players say dabber.
CageA drum the caller turns to mix small wooden balls before drawing one.
BlowerA machine that blows air to mix ping-pong balls until one is drawn.
Random number generatorA program that picks the numbers when there are no balls. This page works that way.
Ways to win
LineOne full row. In the 90-ball game that is five numbers across a ticket.
Two linesAny two complete rows on the same 90-ball ticket.
Full houseAll fifteen numbers on a 90-ball ticket.
Four cornersThe four corner squares of a card, or the end numbers of the top and bottom rows of a ticket.
BlackoutEvery square on a 75-ball card: 24 numbers and the free space. Also called a coverall.
Postage stampA block of four marked squares, two by two, in a corner of the card.
Hard-way bingoA straight line made without the help of the free space.
PatternAny shape the caller names before a game as the one that wins it.
Wild numberA house game in which the first ball decides a digit, and every number ending in that digit counts as called.
Breaking the bubbleThe point in a game when enough numbers have been called for a bingo to be possible.
Things callers and players say
Bingo lingoThe rhyming nicknames for the numbers, such as two little ducks for 22.
Eyes downThe British caller's words for "we are about to start".
HouseWhat many British players shout to claim a win. Yes, line and bingo are heard as well.
Housey-houseyThe traditional British name for the game.
WaitingOne number short of a win. Players also say ready, set or cased.
Jumping the gunShouting bingo before the winning number has been said aloud.
False alarmA bingo called in good faith that turns out to be a misheard or mismarked number.
Blind numberIn some British clubs, a number ending in zero: "three-oh, blind thirty".
Last number ruleIn the British game the number just called has to be part of the win, so a player who shouts late can lose the claim.
How this list was compiled: A glossary of playing terms written for this site on 2026-09-19. Each definition was checked on that date against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bingo_(American_version) or https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bingo_(British_version), and the article used is recorded with each term. Terms about stakes, jackpots and betting were left out, because this page is for games played for fun. House rules vary from hall to hall, so a term may be used a little differently where you play. Licence: own work
How it works
A lit bingo flashboard is hall hardware, and it is not cheap. This page is the free on-screen stand-in: put it on a TV or projector and press Call the next one. It draws the numbers 1 to 90 without repeats and shows each one in large type with its traditional call. Every number called so far is listed, ready for checking a card. It sells and reviews no hardware.
Read the full guide
Run a game from one screen
Put the page on the TV by cable or screen cast. It is a web page, so a bingo caller for Mac, Windows or a tablet is the same link, with nothing to install. Press Call the next one and the box shows the count, such as Call 3 of 90, the number with its saying, and how many are left in the bag. Take back the last call undoes a slip, and New game asks for a second press. Browser zoom makes the box the nearest thing here to a large bingo board.
The two games, and checking a win
The British game has 90 numbers, and a night usually plays for one line, then two lines, then a full house. The American game has 75 numbers on a 5 × 5 card, and the caller names the winning pattern first. When someone shouts, stop and have the winner read the numbers back while you look down Called so far. A to Z sorts that list as text, so 1 sits before 10 to 19. House rules vary: many British halls pay only a win that includes the last number called.
The printed list and what the browser remembers
All 90 calls are printed under the caller in nine number groups, each with a line on where it comes from. There are 46 rhymes, 10 from the look of the digits, 15 from dozens and counting, and 19 from songs, stories and history, plus 31 also-called variants. People look these up as bingo sayings for numbers, bingo number nicknames or bingo slang. The game is saved in this browser after every call, so a refresh does not lose the night. For cards to mark, use the bingo card generator.
Read the box as it stands, then repeat the number alone: twenty-two, two little ducks, twenty-two.
Funny bingo callouts land when the room answers. Teach two replies before the first game: quack quack for 22 and every penny for 56.
For a family night, tick Family-friendly calls under More options: it swaps the few calls that poke fun at someone.
A TV on a stand makes a fine bingo display board. Set it high and away from a window, where a hall hangs its board for flashboard bingo.
Before the first number, say what you are playing for, and that a win counts only when shouted before the next call.
Questions and answers
Is this a real bingo flashboard?
No, it is a web page doing a flashboard's job. A lit board lights each of its 75 or 90 numbers as it is called. This page shows the latest call in large type and lists every number called, which on a wide TV is big bingo board enough for most rooms.
Can I call a 75-ball game?
Yes. Press 75 ball above the board before the first call of the game.
Can I run bingo on a video call?
Yes. Share the browser window so everyone sees the call box. For cards, send players the bingo card generator link.
Where do the bingo nicknames come from?
From British halls, where the game was long known as housey-housey, and from soldiers before that: some calls date back to 1900. Number 9, Doctor's orders, was an army pill, and 76, Trombones, is a show tune. Most bingo funny sayings are plain rhymes, one-liners short enough to shout.
Are there modern bingo calls?
Yes. In May 2003 a British holiday camp chain swapped some 1950s calls for new ones. Chicken vindaloo for 52 is the one in our list, because most of the rest named celebrities of that year.
What does the bingo terminology mean?
Eyes down means the game is starting, a line is one full row, and a full house is every number on a ticket. House is the winner's shout in many British halls, and waiting means one number short.