a
reference to throwing or tossing dice in a gambling
game, such as craps. In this
game, a person rolls two dice. If he gets a seven or eleven on his first
roll, he automatically
wins. If he gets a two, three or twelve (all called craps), he automatically loses. If he first rolls any other number (such as an eight), he rolls the dice again in an attempt to get the same number (eight) to
win. In doing this, if he happens to
throw a seven, he loses.
Shooting dice can also be used figuratively to mean that someone is taking a
risk or chance.