You’ve checked in, made it through security, found your gate, queued to get on board, struggled with the overhead lockers and settled back into your seat. Then you hear the captain saying, “We’re waiting for a slot.” What does that mean and why is it taking so long?

From Webster’s:

1. A narrow notch, groove or opening, especially one for receiving something, as a keyway in machinery or a slit for a coin in a vending machine. 2. A position in a sequence or series: He was given the slot as chief copy editor of the Gazette. 3. A time period in a schedule or program: The conference room was booked a week in advance.

In computers, a slot (plural slots) is a unit of operation issue and data path processing that shares the same physical resources as an execution unit. In very long instruction word (VLIW) machines, the term is often used to refer to the portion of the hardware that carries out the instructions in a VLIW computer.

Online casino games use a similar concept of’slots’ to control how and when a player receives their payouts. Random number generator software generates a string of numbers each time the slot is spun, and this determines which symbols land and how much they pay out. Some slots have fixed jackpots that increase every time the same symbol appears, while others offer progressive jackpots that grow until the game is won.

Aside from the payouts, slots also have various rules and guidelines that need to be followed in order to play them. These can be displayed in the form of a pay table or information table, and will usually include details on how to activate bonus features and what each bonus feature entails. They may also detail the minimum and maximum stake values, as well as the pay-table paylines.

Another thing that a slot will usually have is an RTP or return to player percentage, which indicates how likely it is to pay out over time. The higher the RTP, the more likely a slot is to pay out. However, this does not guarantee that you will win any money at all, and the actual returns from any spin will depend on the specific game’s variance – whether the payouts come in larger though less frequent chunks or smaller though more regular ones.

In sports, a slot is the position on the field closest to the receiver during a pass or running play. Slot receivers are usually used to open up space for bigger runners and blockers, and can help to create holes in a defense. Slot receivers also tend to be at a greater risk of injury, as they are closer to the ball carrier and can be exposed to big hits from different angles. For this reason, it is important for them to run routes that correspond with the rest of the receiver corps. This will help to confuse the defense and improve the chances of a successful play.