prop, prop bet, proposition bet

[Benjamin Zimmer]

On Fri, 23 Sep 2005 16:13:16 -0500, Mullins, Bill wrote:

>> I'm sure the 1991 cite below for "prop (bet)" below can
>> easily be antedated by looking in the appropriate sources.
>> (Factiva only has the Las Vegas Review-Journal back to 1990.)
>>
>Amazon's Inside the Book yields a 1985 cite.

Thanks for that-- it's in a book on craps...

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1985 J. Gollehon _All About Craps_ 35 Prop is short for "proposition," and
that's the name of all these neat little bets you can make in the center
layout of the table. Each prop bet represents a "teardrop" on the casino's
chandeliers.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0399514627/
-----

I'd still expect something earlier than 1991 for sports gambling.

Another compound form is "prop betting":

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1995 "Online betting" in _rec.gambling_ (Usenet newsgroup) 11 May,
Actually Sports Intl. has just put their online prop betting into effect.
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.gambling/msg/dee25b9e350508f3
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2003 _Wall St. Journal_ 23 Jan. D1 (Factiva) Prop betting will help draw
250,000 people to Las Vegas this weekend, where they're likely to spend
even more money on hotel rooms, food and other entertainment.
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2005 K. Scheinberg _The Tilt Boys_ 123 To be successful in prop betting,
you need only surround yourself with Steve, Rafe, and Stern.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1596701404/
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--Ben Zimmer