A slot (plural slots) is a narrow opening, often of the shape of a triangle or rectangle. It may be used to receive something, such as a coin or a letter. It may also refer to a position or assignment, such as a job opening or a spot in a schedule. The word is also a verb, meaning to place or fit something into such an opening: To slot a piece of metal into a hole in a workpiece.
A slot is a device in an ice hockey rink that separates the face-off circles from the center of the field. It is not to be confused with a penalty area. The term is also used to refer to an unmarked area of the ice where the puck cannot enter. In a game of ice hockey, players may also use the word to refer to the area between the face-off circle and the blue line.
The slot is a narrow opening in a machine or container that holds coins or other tokens to activate the machine and make it work. In the UK, these machines are known as fruit machines, in Australia and New Zealand they are called poker machines, and in the US, they are simply referred to as slot machines. The term has also been applied to video games that incorporate spinning reels with symbols and payouts based on combinations of those symbols, even though they are not mechanical.
To play a slot, a player inserts money or, in the case of ticket-in, ticket-out machines, a paper ticket with a barcode. Upon activation, the machine’s reels spin and stop to rearrange symbols, generating combinations that earn credits based on the paytable. Depending on the type of machine, the number of possible winning combinations can vary. In some slots, the player can choose which lines they want to bet on, while in others, the number of paylines is fixed.
When an airline or airport wants to operate more planes at the same time than usual, it may request a “slot” from air traffic control. This is an authorization to take off or land during a specific time period, and it can help prevent a buildup of flights that causes delays. In addition, it can help airlines avoid overbooking. In the United States, slots are usually allocated to large international hubs such as Los Angeles, New York City, and London, but smaller airports may also use them. In some cases, an airline may share a slot with another airline or with a non-airline partner. The resulting agreement is sometimes called a shared slots arrangement. This type of arrangement can also be used to manage capacity on domestic routes, especially during peak periods. It is less common than air traffic control slot allocation, which assigns specific times to each airline for a given flight or runway. These arrangements are often made in advance. The United States Department of Transportation regulates this practice through the Federal Aviation Administration, which maintains a database of all available slots at each airport.
