General term for gambling, including both legal and illegal activities. Often used in formal or legal contexts.
He lost his entire fortune through gambling.
He was arrested for engaging in illegal gambling.
賭博は法律で禁止されている国もある。
Gambling is prohibited by law in some countries.
The man was arrested on gambling charges.
As his debts piled up, he ended up getting into gambling.
He was fined for the crime of gambling.
博打 is a colloquial, slightly old-fashioned word for gambling used in everyday conversation, while 賭博 is the stiff, legal/official term for the same act.
賭博 is a formal, often legal term for gambling as a criminal or social act, whereas 賭け is the everyday word for a bet or gamble.
投機 is financial speculation such as trading stocks or land that serves an economic function, whereas 賭博 is pure gambling, often illegal and purely for chance-based winnings.
Standard kanji spelling; the most common written form.
Search-only kanji form; not used in normal writing.
Compound of 賭 (to bet, wager) and 博 (gambling, game of chance). The kanji combination directly conveys the meaning of gambling.