subs. (gaming).—Doubling a stake at every loss. [From the fact that, as in all fair games, a player must win once, there is a safe hold of fortune. The difficulty is to command a big enough bank, or, having the bank, to find some one to follow in a fair game.]
1823. BADCOCK (‘Jon Bee’), Dictionary of the Turf, etc., s.v. MARTINGALE—at play, to double stakes constantly, until luck taking one turn only, repays the adventurer all.
1855. THACKERAY, The Newcomes, XXVIII. You have not played as yet? Do not do so; above all, avoid a MARTINGALE if you do.
1874. M. and F. COLLINS, Frances, ix. ‘This is my cousin, Dick Wyldote. You ought to know him. He’s got an infallible MARTINGALE—breaks the bank everywhere.’
1887. Science, x. 44. The fallacy of those who devise sure methods of defeating the bank (MARTINGALES as they are termed), etc.
