Poker Glossary
Poker Glossary - What is a
A-Game - A game played at the highest stakes in a certain venue.
ABC Player - A player who follows a predictable betting pattern.
Able - A basically obsolete term for the player immediately to the left of the dealer, in games that use forced bets or blinds.
According to Hoyle - A phrase used to emphasize the proper rules of a game.
Act - An intentional tell intended to give false information about a player’s hand.
Action - Involves checking/raising/betting/folding. Also, a game in which players are playing a lot of pots is considered an “action” game.
Angle - Any action that isn’t necessarily against the rules but still incorporates unfair tactics nonetheless.
Acted - A player has acted when he or she passes, checks, raises, or calls as long as this action has been done in turn.
Advertise - Process of making a bluff with the intention of being exposed as a loose player.
Alcohol - An imitation of ‘I’ll call.’ It is an announcement by a player that they will make the minimum bet necessary to continue in the hand and has no relation with alcoholic beverages.
All In - Placing all of the player’s money in the pot. Also known as All the Way.
Announce - In high/low games, declaring one’s hand as high or low.
Ante - The wager required from each player to begin the game prior to dealing the cards.
Apple - A big game, often the biggest in the casino or club.
Artist - The name given to a cheater who manipulates the deck.
As Nas - A Persian game which many believe is a predecessor of poker.
Assigned Better - The first player to bet in a round.
Automatic - A player being in a must-bet situation.
Automatic Bet - A bet, or rather most often a bluff, made regardless of one’s cards in a situation in which the bet usually wins.
Back Into a Hand - Drawings cards and making a hand that is different from the hand you were originally trying to make.
Backer - A nonplayer who finances an active player.
Backraise - This is a re-raise from a player who has already called.
Bad Beat - Occurs when a player is beaten by a lucky draw.
Bankroll - The amount of money a player has.
Barn - Also known as Full Barn. Another name for a Full House.
Battle of the Blinds - Occurs when everyone folds to the players who have forced bets.
Beat the Board - When a player has a hand better than all the others showing.
Bet - Initiates a wager, done by putting chips into the pot.
Bet the Limit - Betting as much as is allowed.
Bet the Pot - Done by betting as many chips as there already is in the pot.
Bet for Value - Bet a hand with the intention of getting called by one or more lesser hand, as opposed to getting the other players to fold.
Betting Stakes - The limits of all bets and raises that are permitted.
Big Blind - A designated amount that is placed by the player sitting in the second position, clockwise from the dealer, before any cards are dealt.
Blank - A card that is useless.
Bleed - When a player wins a lot of money a little at a time from either a game or a particular player.
Blind Bet - A bet made prior to looking at the player’s own hand.
Blocker - A need card already in another player’s hand.
Blow Back - Happens when a player loses all or most of the money they have won.
Bluff - A bluff is made when a player bets or raises with a hand he or she does not think is very good.
Board (Boardcards) - The cards that are held face up in the player’s hand.
Boat - See Full House.
Boss - The best hand at a stage in the betting.
Boxed Card - A boxed card is one that is considered non-existent due to the fact that it appears the wrong way (face-up) in the deck.
Bring It In - The starting of the betting in the first round.
Bring In - The forced bet made in the first round of betting by the player who is dealt the lowest card showing in Seven Card Stud. In Lowball, it is the highest card showing.
Broadway - An ace high straight.
Broomcorn’s Uncle - An interesting term for a player who ante’s his or herself broke.
Bug - In certain variants of poker the bug is a restricted wild card which can either represent an ace or fill a gap in a straight or flush
Bull the Game - To bluff often.
Bump - Process of raising.
Burn Card - The term for the standard procedure in which the dealer removes the next card from the deck by placing it face down underneath a chip. One card is to be burned between each betting round.
Bust - A useless hand that has failed to improve as the player hoped; also known as a busted hand.
Bust Out - Happens when a player loses all their chips and therefore is eliminated.
Button - A rotating disc that is designed to represent the dealer for indicating which player is last to act. The player immediately to the left of the button acts first.
Buy - To make a large bet in the hopes of discouraging other players from continuing.
Buy-In - The determined amount of chips necessary to enter into the poker game.
By Me - An expression that generally means to pass or to check.
California Lowball - A very popular form of Lowball where a joker is used.
Call - Matching another player’s bet or raise.
Call Cold - To call and also then raise.
Caller - The one who makes the call.
Capping the Raise - The final raise, usually the third, in most games.
Cards Speak - Where a player’s hand is the most favorable possible combination of cards, no matter how they call it.
Case Card - The fourth and therefore last card of a certain rank to become available.
Case Chips - These are the player’s last chips.
Cash In - To cash in one’s chips for money.
Catch Bluffing - Done when calling or raising a player who is bluffing.
Center Pot - The main pot in contrast to any side pots.
Change Gears - A player changing his or her style of play.
Chase - Process of playing a hand that is likely to be worse than at least one other player’s hand.
Cheater - A player who intentionally violates rules in order to obtain an unfair advantage.
Check - Occurs when a, on a player’s turn and there was no act done before it, a player decides not to bet.
Check Raise - Process of checking and then raising after another player bets.
Cheese - A substandard starting hand.
Chip - The round token used instead of cash at poker tables.
Chop - To return the blinds to the players who posted them and move on to the next hand if no other players call.
Cinch Hand - A hand that simply can’t be beaten.
Coffeehousing - Occurs when players talk about a hand they are involved in with the intent of misleading or manipulating other players.
Cold Hands - These are showdown hands.
Collection - The fee charged in the game (can be taken from pot or from each player).
Color Change - This is a request to change chips.
Come Hand - A drawing hand.
Common Card - A card dealt face up to be used by all players.
Community Cards - Cards that are turned face up in the middle of the table and which belong to all players still in the hand. These are used in Hold ‘em and Omaha.
Complete Hand - This is a hand that is defined by all five cards: a straight, a flush, a full house, a four of a kind, or a straight flush.
Conservative - A player only betting when having good hands.
Counterfeit - When a hand becomes less valuable because of a board card.
Crack - Means to beat a hand, typically a big hand.
Cripple - Means to cripple the deck, as a player has most or all of the cards that somebody would want to have with the current board.
Cut - To divide the deck of cards into two separate sections so as to change the order of the playing cards. (also Cut the Deck)
Cut-Card - Another name for the bottom card.
Dead Card - Any card that is not legally playable.
Dead Hand - A foul hand that is unplayable.
Deal - To give each player his or her cards or to put cards on the board.
Dealer - The one who is in charge of dealing the cards.
Dealer’s Position - Player being the last one to act during a betting round. This is determined by the dealer button.
Deck - The set of playing cards.
Declaration - A player declaring which part of the pot the player is going for in a Hi/Lo game of poker.
Discard - This is in draw games where a player removes certain cards so they can be replaced with others in hopes of obtaining a better hand.
Door Card - The first exposed card in a player’s hand.
Double Bluff - This is a bluff that involves an initial bet, being raised, and re-raising.
Double Up - This happens when a player goes all in on a hand during a no-limit game and winning which essentially doubles the player’s bankroll.
Down and Dirty - Term used for the final ‘hole’ card dealt in Seven Card Stud.
Down Card - Cards that are dealt face-down.
Draw - The point during play at which active players discard the cards they don’t want and receive new ones from the dealer.
Draw Card - A card which a player has received as a result of drawing.
Draw Out - Beating a hand that was previously superior to a player’s prior to the player’s draw phase
Draw Snow - Bluffing both before and after the draw.
Drawing Hand - A hand that needs to be improved in order to be able to win such as a flush or a straight.
Driver’s Seat - The player who is generally initiating all of the betting in the game.
Drop Out - To fold by deciding to retire and not call a bet or raise.
Early Position - The position in a round of betting where the player must act before most of the other players at the table.
Edge - This is an advantageous position.
Eight or Better To Qualify - A offshoot of high-low split in which the low hand must have an eight low card or smaller in order to qualify for the low hand; otherwise, the high hand will win the entire pot.
End Bet - The last bet of a betting interval.
Ethics/Etiquette - The understandings and courtesies of which violations do not constitute cheating.
Face Card - Any king, queen, or jack.
Fill - Drawing a card to fill the five card hand.
Flop - These are the first three exposed community cards which are dealt simultaneously
Flush - Five cards being of the same suit.
Fold - Process of giving up your hand and therefore any chance of winning the pot.
Forced Bet - The required bet to start the action on the first round of a poker hand in Seven-Card Stud. It is usually the lowest card on board that must make a forced bet.
Foul - A hand which is forfeited and may not be played for a given reason.
Four of a Kind - Four cards of the same face value.
Full House - Any three cards of the same face value plus two other cards with them having the same face value as one another. For example, three 10’s and two 5’s would constitute a full house.
Freeroll - A chance to win something without having to pay a cost.
Gallery - The non playing spectators.
Gambler - A player who wagers at unfavorable edge odds.
Gravy - A player’s winnings.
Grifter - A cheater.
Gut Shot - This is a draw to an inside straight. Also known as a belly buster.
Hand - The player’s best five cards.
Head Up - Playing against only a single opponent. Pot is only being contested by these two players.
Help Card - Any card which improves the player’s hand.
High-Low Split (aka High-Lo Split) - The variation of poker in which the highest and lowest ranking hands win and split the pot.
High Hand - The best hand in the round.
High Roller - A gambler who plays for high stakes.
Hitchhiker - A player who comes to win the pot as the victim of a trap.
Hole Cards - The cards that are faced down in front of the player.
Horsing - Passing some money to another player after winning the pot.
Hot Hand - Having a run of good hands.
House - The institute holding the game.
House Rules- The rules which have been agreed upon by the players.
Ice - A name for a cold deck.
In the Hole - The cards that are dealt face down in stud poker.
Indirect Bet - An opponent betting or raising for another player sandbagging a good hand.
Inside Straight - A form of a straight which can only be made with a card of one rank that’s usually somewhere in the middle of the straight.
Intentional Flashing - Purposely showing one’s hand to another player.
Iron Duke - Any unbeatable hand (aka Ironclad Hand).
Jackpot - The prize awarded to a player who meets given conditions.
Jam - A pot in which several players are raising.
Jammed Pot - A pot which has been raising the maximum amount of times.
Joker - The partially wild card used in some poker games.
Key Card - The card which gives the player a big draw.
Kibitzer - A talking spectator.
Kicker - Any unpaired card in a hand.
Leader - The first player to bet into a pot.
Lid - The top card of the deck.
Limit - The amount any player may bet or raise on any round of betting.
Limit Poker - Any poker game where the minimum and maximum amounts a player may bet or raise on any given round of betting are fixed.
Limper - The first player who calls a bet.
Live One - A player who isn’t very knowledgeable.
Lock - Another name for an unbeatable hand.
Look - When a player calls a final bet.
Loose - A player who plays a lot of hands.
Main Pot - Another name for the central pot.
Make the Deck - Shuffling the deck.
Mechanic - See ‘Artist’
Misdeal - A mistake in the dealing of a hand which calls for the hand to be reshuffled and then dealt again.
Miss - The act of not being able to make a drawing hand when a player’s final cards are dealt.
Monster - A very big hand.
Muck - To discard or throw away one’s hand.
Move All-In - To bet all the money a player has on the table.
Natural - A hand without any wild cards.
No-Limit Poker - Any game of poker where players are allowed to bet any amount of chips they have in front of them.
Nursing - Process of playing conservatively due to only having a few chips.
Nut - The winnings needed to survive.
Nuts - The best possible hand at any given point during the game.
Odds - The probability of making a hand.
Offsuit - Cards that are of a different suit.
Open - Making a first bet in a hand of poker.
Opener - The player who made the first bet.
One pair - Any exposed pair.
Outdraw - When one player beats another by drawing a better hand.
Outs - The number of cards left that can improve one’s hand.
Overcall - When a play calls after another has already done so.
Overcard - A card higher than any card an opponent has showing.
Overpair - A pocket pair higher than any of those currently present on the board.
Pair - Any two cards of the same face or number value.
Pass - To check or to fold.
Pat - Not drawing any cards in a draw game.
Play Over - Playing in a seat when the occupant is absent.
Pocket - The down or hole cards.
Point - The value of the card.
Poker - The name of the game we all love. Uses cards and involves manipulation and deception to win.
Position - Where a player is seated in relation to the dealer. Effects order in which player acts.
Post a Bet - Place chips in the pot.
Pot - The money or chips in the center of the table to be won.
Pot-Limit Poker - Any game in which the player may bet or raise any amount up to the current size of the pot.
Push - When the dealer pushes the chips to the winning player.
Quorum - Minimum number of players needed to start a poker game.
Rake - The determined charge that the dealer extracts for the house from each pot for the privilege of playing.
Rank - The value of each card or hand.
Redeal - A new deal after there is a misdeal.
Represent A Hand - Term for when a player makes his or her opponents believe that they have a bigger hand than they are showing on board. For example, if in Seven-Card Stud he or she raisse with an ace showing, they are representing a pair of aces. They may or may not in fact have a pair of aces.
Re-raise - To raise again after another player has already raised.
River - The last card given in any poker game.
Rock - A passive player.
Rolled Up - The process of being dealt three-of-a-kind on the first three cards in Seven-Card Stud.
Rotation - Movement in the direction of the deal which is clockwise.
Run a Pot - When a player bluffs on multiple bets to win the pot.
Royal Flush - An ace-high straight flush.
Rush - A winning streak.
Sandbagging - Holding back and calling despite the fact you have a good hand used to disguise strength of the hand.
Scoop - Winning the entire pot.
Scramble - Face-down mixing of the cards.
Set - This is a Three-of-a-kind.
Show Cards - Process of showing one’s cards at the end of the round.
Showdown - Occurs at the end of the final betting round. All players turn cards face-up to see who wins the pot.
Shuffle - Act of mixing cards prior to dealing.
Side Pot - A pot separate from the main pot which is usually formed by continued betting after a player has put all his chips into the main pot.
Sitting Out - When a player decides to leave a table for a few hands.
Stack - A pile of chips.
Stake - What a player is willing to bet in any given game.
Stand-off - To call or raise.
Stay - When a player decides to stay in the game by calling rather than raising the bet.
Steal - To steal the pot is raising in expectation that all other players will fold. If they do indeed fold then the player has stolen the pot.
Steam - When a player plays wildly and calls or raises a lot.
Straight - Five cards appearing in sequence (by number value) in the hand.
Straight Flush - Five cards in a hand appearing in sequence (by number value) and all being of the same suit.
Stranger - A new or unfamiliar card after the draw in a hand.
Streak - A run of winning or losing hands.
Street - Cards dealt on a particular round in stud games. For instance, the fourth card in a player’s hand is often known as fourth street, the sixth card as sixth street, and so on.
String Bet - An illegal raise made in two distinct motions since the player can’t make the full bet in the first.
Structure - The limits put on the blinds/ante, bets, and raises in any given game.
Stub - Portion of deck which has not been dealt.
Stuck - Player who is losing in the game.
Suicide King - The King of Hearts who appears to be committing suicide.
Suit - The characteristic of a playing card. The card being either of Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts, or Spades.
Suited - Two or more cards of the same suit together.
Super-Bluff - Winning a hand by bluffing against a vastly superior hand.
Table - The surface on which the game is played.
Tap - In no-limit games, to wager all of one’s money in one single bet.
Tell - An action that gives clues as to what cards are held by a player.
Three of a Kind - Three cards of the same face value.
Ticket - A card.
Tie - Two hands of equal value. Pot is normally divided between these two players.
Tied On - When a player’s hand is good enough to play until the end.
Tight - When a player doesn’t play for many pots.
Trapper - Any player who underbets a good hand to create a larger pot.
Trips - Another name for a Three-of-a-kind.
Turn - The third round of betting in the game.
Underplay - To make a small bet in the hopes of enticing others to bet as well.
Up Card - Any card that is dealt face up.
Variance - The measure of the up and down swings of a player’s bankroll.
Walk - A pot won by the last blind bet when no player opens.
Weak - This is one who folds too many hands.
Welcher - Any player who fails to pay off a debt.
Window - The card flashed at the end of a player’s closed hand.
Wing - Term given to those who have a winning streak.
Winning Hand - A hand that a player gets paid for.
Wired Pair - Any pair in the hole.
World Series of Poker - A Texas Hold ‘Em Tournament with a large grand prize held in Las Vegas.
Worst Hand - A losing hand.
Zombie - A poker player with no ‘tells.’ Generally is one who shows little emotion.
More rules:
Double Flop Hold ‘Em:
Double Flop Hold ‘Em plays quite similarly to standard Texas Hold ‘Em with only a couple differences. In this, there are two ‘flops’ or two sets of boards (community cards). The dealer begins by shuffling the 52 card deck. In casino and professional play, the dealer doesn’t play. Instead, a dealer button (a round disc) moves clockwise around the table after each hand and it indicates which player would be the dealer if the dealer position changed with each hand.
After this, the blind bets are made by the first two players to the left of the dealer (from here on ‘dealer’ refers to who the dealer button is on). This is done prior to any cards are dealt to ensure that there is a winnings pot for every hand. Generally, the first blind bet is half of the minimum bet and the second blind bet is the full minimum bet. Once these are done, each player receives two cards face down known as the ‘hole cards.’
From there, a round of betting takes place beginning with the player to the left of the two players who have already posted the blinds. Players can raise, call, or fold when their turn comes. After the first round of betting, the dealer then ‘burns’, or discards, the top card of the deck and then puts the next three cards face up for one board and another three cards for another board. These cards are the community cards and they are shared by all players in the game.
This process continues and another round of betting takes place where each player has the opportunity to raise, call, or fold on their turn. The top card is once again burned and another card is placed face-up on the table per board for a total of four community cards for each board. This is repeated once more with another round of betting, the top card being burned, and another card being placed face-up with the other community cards per each board.
At this point there should be five community cards on the table for each of the two boards. Another round of betting then takes place. After the final betting round, all players who remain in the game reveal their hands. The player who made the initial bet or the player who made the last raise shows their hand first. Players can form the best five card combination using their own two ‘hole cards’ and the five community cards. Players try to do this for each board. Players cannot combine community cards from the two different boards. The player with the best hand wins.
There also exists Double Flop Hold ‘Em Hi/Lo in which the low hand wins the pot rather than the traditional high hand.
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