noun
A person or establishment that takes bets, especially in gambling contexts. 'Bookie' is informal.
彼は競馬の賭け屋をしている。
He works as a bookmaker for horse racing.
あの賭け屋はいつも店の裏で客を取っている。
That bookie always takes customers behind the shop.
Loanword from English; more common in modern contexts, especially sports betting. 賭け屋 is a native Japanese term with a slightly old-fashioned or underworld nuance.
Compound of 賭け (kake, 'betting') and 屋 (ya, 'shop' or 'person'), literally 'betting house/person'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word follows a common pattern for occupational nouns.