Poker Vocabulary, Slang & Glossary

The poker glossary with hundreds of poker terms and their definition. This is Poker, from A to Z.

Poker has its own terminology, slang, and vocabulary. From idioms that appeared over time to official terms, we have created the ultimate lits of poker terms.

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Word	Definition
ace in the hole	A player has an ace card in his hole cards.
ace-high	Formation of a hand while having an ace kicker.
ace-to-five (ace-to-six)	A low ranking hand that is considered the strongest in lowball variant rules.
aces full	Having a full house with triple aces and a pair.
aces up	A hand consisting of two pairs, one of which consists of aces.
act	Performing one of several poker actions such as calling, checking, or raising.
acting out of turn	Intentionally announcing an action before the player's turn.
action	Refers to a player's turn when they can check, call, raise, or fold.
action button	A required bet for scoop pot winners.
action card	A community card such as a river that can boost one or more players' hands.
action only	Occurs when a player calls an all-in raise after making a bet.
active player	A player who has yet to fold in one round.
active players	People with an active hand during one round.
add-on	A means of buying more chips during a poker tournament's rebuy period.
advertising	A bluff used by players to convey that they play loosely or badly.
aggression factor (af)	A tracked ratio of a player's calls to their bets.
aggressive play	A betting style that involves frequent raising.
air	Signifies trash or valueless hand such as 4♦ 9♣ 2♥ 6♦ 7♥.
all-in	An act of betting every single chip.
american airlines	A Texas Hold'em term for hole cards with two aces.
angle	Actions during live games that are legal, but are deceitful.
angle shooting	Methods that a player uses to confuse or trick someone during a live game.
ante	An amount of money that players need to place into the pot.
ante off	An event when a player used all of their chips to pay the ante.
any two cards	Refers to a scenario where a blind takes all of a player's chips, removing any possible decisions.
baby	A card that can form a poker hand with the least possible value.
back in	Refers to a player checking to enter a pot and calling another player's open.
back into	Winning with a low valued hand against hands that are less valuable.
backdoor	A hand formed with the turn and river cards during Texas hold 'em and Omaha.
backraise	Occurs when a player re-raises after calling a bet.
bad beat	A situation where a player beats a high valued hand with a winning draw from the turn or river.
bad beat story	Tales of a player's experience where they lose from a tide-turning river draw.
balance	Employing different strategies and betting methods for various holes to become unpredictable.
bank	A dealer who manages the buy-ins, chip distribution, and game payout.
bankroll	Refers to the player's money used for poker games.
bankroll management	Means of managing a player's bankroll by setting a specific stake amount per game.
behind	A situation when a player has the least amount of chips on the table.
belly buster	An inside straight formed by obtaining the required middle card from a draw.
bet	A certain amount of chips players put into the pot.
bet the pot	A bet that is equal to the value of the pot.
betting structure	Specified rules of a game in regards to the bet amount players can make.
bicycle	A lowball variant hand where the lowest ranking cards have the best possible value.
big bet	Bets that are 2x the average fixed limit game bet amount.
big bet game	Games with no limit or no pot-limit betting structures that allow large bets.
big blind	Required post from a player who is in the second position from the dealer.
big blind special	Winning with low-valued pocket cards after calling the big blind and no raises were made before the flop.
big full	A full house hand with the best possible cards such as As A♣ A♦ K♣ K♥ during Texas Hold'em and Omaha.
big slick	Refers to hole cards made of aces and kings such as A♥ K♦.
big stack	A chip stack that is past the limit of a game's stake.
blank	Flop cards that do not form a hand with any player's hole cards.
blaze	A special hand formed from face cards that ranks higher than two pairs and ranks lower than three of a kind.
bleed	Consistently losing chips through a series of bad decisions.
blind	Bets that two players need to make when they are sitting next to the dealer position.
blind defense	Strategy employed by big or small blind players that involves re-raising or calling raises.
blind off, blinded	Occurs when the increasing blind bought down a player's stack.
blind raise	A forced raise after the blind is called.
blind steal	A raise made by a player to the right most of the dealer before the flop.
blind stud	A stud poker variant that involves dealing cards in a face-down position.
blocker	Hole cards in Texas Hold'em that decreases the possibility of an opponent forming a specific hand.
blocking bet	A small out-of-position bet to stop an opponent from making a large bet after the flop.
bluff	Bets intended to trick opponents into folding because of a false threatening hand.
bluff catching range	Hands that did not increase in value during the river, but is within a decent range for bluffing.
bluff induce	Aggressive bets a player employs to make opponents think they are bluffing while holding a strong hand.
board	Community cards in Texas Hold'em and Omaha as well as face-up cards in stud pokers.
boardcards	Face-up cards dealt to players for others to see.
boat	Another term for a full house, a hand consisting of three of a kind and pair cards.
bomb pot	Refers to an agreement where players around the table are required to bet a set chip amount dealing the hand.
both ways	A term for the high pot and low pot during a high-low split game.
bottom dealing	A form of cheating that involves dealing cards from the deck's bottom.
bottom end	A straight with the lowest possible value formed from the community cards.
bottom pair	Forming the worst possible pair from the flop such as K♥ 5♣ hole to a 10♦ 5♦ As flop.
bottom pair, bottom set	A low-valued hand in community card games such as Texas Hold'em.
bounty	Cash prizes for eliminating other opponents during poker tournaments.
box	Refers to the place where the house dealer sits as well as the tray where dealers place their chips.
boxed card	A card dealt face-up from the assembled deck by mistake, which dealers consider a void card in any game.
break	Discarding one or more cards that formed a hand during draw poker games to bluff opponents or create a better hand.
brick	Low ranking community cards that cannot form a hand with a player's hole cards.
brick and mortar	A physical casino where poker games are held.
bridge order	A ranking of suits in poker as shown here As > A♥ > A♦ > A♣.
bring in	Refers to bets a player makes with the worst possible hand on the first street of stud poker variants.
bring it in	Marking the start of the betting round with a raise during the first round of a game.
bring-in	A forced bet on the first betting round in certain poker variants such as Razz.
broadway	Forming a straight made of the highest valued cards such as10s J♦ Q♦ K♥ A♣.
broomcorn's uncle	A term for a player who loses all of their chips after paying the ante.
brush	Staff members who assist players in a physical cardroom.
bubble	A term for the last player to defeat before winning a poker tournament.
bubble factor	A value that indicates a player's ratio of chips they win and lose.
buck	A button that indicates who is on the dealer position for one round.
bug	Indicates a wild card that can act as a specific card to form a straight or flush.
bullets	Another term for a hand with aces pair.
bully	An aggressive player who keeps targetting timid or tight players with consistent raises.
bump	Another term for raising or betting.
burn	Act of discarding the first card at the top of the deck before dealing.
burn card, burn	A dealt face down card that dealers discard to avoid cheating.
busted	An event when a player loses their entire chip pile.
button	A small round plate passed clockwise in each round to show which player is the dealer.
buy	A large bet used to bluff or intimidate players into folding.
buy short	Buying into a poker game for the lowest allowed amount.
buy the button	A rule that allows a new player sitting left of the dealer to pay both the big and small blinds for one hand.
buy the pot	A scenario where a player wins the pot by betting and have every active player fold.
buy-in	A required entry fee for players to enter a specific poker game.
call	Making a bet that matches another player's raise.
call cold	An action that calls both a raise and a bet.
call the clock	a declaration made by a player to set a time limit for an opponent's turn.
calling station	A term for players who tends to call bets instead of raising.
cap	A limit on the number of raises made during a betting round.
cap game	A no-limit or pot-limit game max betting limit.
card protector	Positioning a player's cards in a facedown orientation.
cardroom	Designated areas in a casino where poker games are available.
cards	Playing cards used in forming various poker hands.
cards speak	Having the best possible cards to form winning hands.
case	Requiring one card to create a hand that is more valuable than other players' hand.
case card	Refers to the 52^nd or last card dealt from the deck.
case chips	A player's last few chips from their pile.
cash game	A poker game with the players staking their own money.
cash out	Leaving a poker game and exchanging chips for actual money.
cash plays	Occurs when players use the cash they have on hand to place a bet instead of converting it to chips.
cashing	Winning a part of a poker tournament's prize pool.
cashing out	Turning all chips into money after finishing a poker game.
catch	An occurrence when a player forms a hand with a draw.
catch perfect	Drawing two catch cards to create a winning hand.
catch up	Beating a player's hand with a draw that forms a more valuable hand.
center pot	Distinguishes the main pot from other side pots.
chase	Calling any bets and waiting on a turn or river draw to form a hand.
check	A poker action that indicates a player not betting or folding on their turn.
check out	Folding a hand even with the opportunity to check since previous players did not raise.
check-raise	A betting method of checking and raising to bluff opponents in calling and increasing the pot value.
chip	A small disc that represents a player's cash.
chip declare	Announcement players make when playing high or low during a split-pot poker game.
chip dumping	A strategy employed by two or more players to intentionally give their chips to a target recipient.
chip leader	A player who is leading a poker tournament by having the highest chip amount.
chip race	Occurs in a poker tournament when dealers remove low valued chips for not meeting the minimum value.
chip up	Converting low denomination chips into high denomination ones during poker tournaments.
chop	Returning a posted blind to a player when no one at the table calls.
chopping the blinds	A situation where everyone folds to the blind and the posted blinds return to a player.
click raise	Players betting the minimum amount, which also refers to clicking the minimum raise button during online poker games.
closed	An end to a betting round when players can no longer raise or bet until the next round.
coffee housing	Vocally bluffing opponents into second-guessing a player's hand value.
coin flip	Two active players with all of their chips in the pot while having a nearly 50/50 chance of winning.
cold call	Calling the total bet amount made by more than one player's raise.
cold deck	Intentionally stacked decks that give cheaters an advantage over potential victims.
collusion	A cheating method performed by more than one player at the table.
color change, color up	A term for converting low denomination chips with higher denomination chips.
combo, combination game	Special poker tables that hold different poker games in rotation.
come bet, on the come	Increasing the value of a pot to make the most out of an upcoming drawing hand.
come hand	Forming a hand with a draw.
community card	A face-up card on the table that players use to form hands during Texas Hold'em and Omaha.
community cards	Series of face-up cards that consists of the flop, river, and turn.
complete hand	Creating a winning hand that does not require a draw to improve it.
completion	Raising small bets to match the normal bet amount.
connector	Hole cards that are one rank different from each other such as a 10♠ J♦.
connectors	Two hole cards with consecutive ranking to each other such as 6♠ 5♦.
continuation bet	Betting at the start of the round and on the next round, also occurs during pre-flops and on the flop.
cooler	Refers to a highly valued hand against an opponent who has a better hand such as having Q♠ Q♦ while the opponent has K♠ K♣.
countdown	A dealer action where they count the cards within the stub after dealing all of them to ensure all 52 cards were on play.
counterfeit	Community cards that lower a player's hand while improving their opponent's hand.
cow	Splitting a buy-in among two or more players and sharing the cash prize after the game.
cowboys	A Texas Hold'em hole cards consisting of pocket kings.
crack	Winning against a valuable hand, often a hole hand consisting of two aces.
cripple	Forming a winning hand that is impossible to beat with turn or river draws.
crying call	Calling a bet even when a player believes their hand is outranked.
cut	Splitting the top and bottom cards of a deck after the initial shuffle to ensure there are no irregularities.
cut card	A cover made of hard plastic that prevents anyone from seeing the bottom card of a deck.
cut-off	Refers to a player sitting on the right side of a dealer who has the second valuable position on the table.
cutoff	A position to the right of a dealer. Players in the cut-off position often cut the deck in a private poker game.
dark	A player calling or betting without any prior knowledge of their opponents.
dead blind	Blinds that players posting the bet cannot raise after other players call it.
dead button	Occurs when a dealer button lands on a vacated position, resulting in one round without anyone calling the small bind.
dead hand	A penalty that invalidates a player's hand due to a violation of the rules.
dead man's hand	A term for having aces and eights two pair hands.
dead money	Refers to the total amount of chips in the pot contributed by players who folded.
deal	Distributing cards to players and on the table.
deal twice	A scenario in cash games where two players agree to deal all remnant cards twice. Half of the pot is at stake for one of two deals.
dealer	A casino staff responsible for managing a poker game.
dealer button	A round disc to signify the dealer position on the table.
dealer's choice	Refers to a poker game the designated dealer in a home setting chooses.
declare	An announcement players make as to which part of the pot they are betting on during hi-lo variants.
deep stack	A large number of chips that go beyond a poker game's stake.
defense	A reaction bet to intimidate bluffing players into folding.
deuce	A hand consisting of a pair of 2 cards such as 2♠ 2♦.
deuce-to-seven	A low ball hand that contains a sequence of 7 and 2 cards like 7♦ 6♥ 5♥ 4♣ 2♦.
deuces	Refers to a pair of 2 cards.
dirty stack	A stack of chips with different denominations.
discard	Removing one or more cards out of play.
dog	Another name for an underdog, a player seen by others around the table as weak.
dominated hand	A hand at play with a lesser value than one held by other players such as a J♠ 10♣ getting dominated by a K♠ 10♦.
donk bet	A non-position bet made on the flop, which stops aggressors from betting after raising pre-flop.
donkey	A negative term for inexperienced players who tend to make bad decisions.
door card	First face-up card in a poker stud variant.
double belly buster straight draw	A straight where a player's hole cards consist of two middle cards while the community cards form the rest.
double raise	Raising to match the initial bet amount.
double suited	An Omaha hand consisting of hole suited cards that form two pairs.
double up, double through	Refers to a player's chip stack after winning one round with an all-in bet during an early round.
double-ace flush	Creating a flush with wildcards substituting as aces even if a player is holding an ace or one is present on the community cards.
double-board, double-flop	Two different boards with its own community cards and pot for certain poker variants.
double-draw	Draw phase and betting round in draw poker variants are repeated.
down card	Cards dealt to players that are facing down.
downbet	Bets that are less than the ones made in the previous round.
downcard	Non-community cards dealt to players in a face-down position.
downswing	A string of losing games a player experiences.
doyle brunson	A specific hole card in Texas Hold'em consisting of 10 and 2 cards, referring to a world championship winner of the same name.
drag light	Occurs when a player returns chips they placed in the pot since they do not have the sufficient amount to call a bet.
draw	Community cards in Texas Hold'em and Omaha that form a hand with a player's hole cards.
draw dead	Forming a losing hand from a draw.
draw lowball	Draw poker variant where the lowest hand is the most valuable one in the game.
draw out	Drawing a card to form a hand that beat's an opponent's hand.
draw poker	A poker variant where players dealt five facedown cards and have the option to replace one or all cards to form a strong hand.
drawing dead	Drawing a hand that will lose to an opponent's hand.
drawing live	Obtaining a winning hand with a draw that beats an opponent's hand.
drawing thin	Chasing a draw with a low chance of forming a winning hand.
drop	Another term for folding or giving up one round.
dry ace	Having a hole card with an ace and another card with a different suit, requiring four community cards with similar suits to form a flush.
dry board	Community cards in poker variants that are not forming any hand among all players around the table.
dry pot	Refers to a side pot without any chips, which occurs when a player goes all-in while other opponents call without raising.
ducks	A hand consisting of 2 cards pair.
duplicate	An event when a player cannot improve their hand with the community cards to win against opponents with stronger hands.
early position	A position where a player is the first to act in the current betting round.
eight or better	Hands consisting of eight or lower cards that have a chance of winning the lowest pot value in a high-low split poker variants.
equity	Calculated expected value data on the active deal that comes from multiplying the pot value by the probability of winning a game.
expectation	Amount of chips a player is looking to gain in one round.
expected value (EV)	An expected average return a player receives when investing a certain amount of chips.
exposed card	Accidental or intentional disclosure of a card.
extra blind	An additional blind a new or returning player posts even where there is already a blind set.
family pot	Occurs when everyone at the table calls pre-flop.
fast	A play style where a player consistently calls and raises with little pauses.
favorite	A favored hand that has a high probability of winning.
favourite	Forming a hand with the best chances of beating other opponents' hands around the table.
feeder	Additional tables in a multi-table poker tournament where other participants are playing.
felt	A term for the poker table that comes from the felt material on the surface.
field	Refers to all participants in poker tournaments.
fifth street	Another term for the river, which is the last community card drawn in one round.
fill, fill up	Completing a hand with a single draw.
final table	A scenario where the remaining players of a multi-table poker tournament compete.
first position	A player who starts the betting round by checking or raising.
fish	Chasing a draw while having a low-valued hand.
five of a kind	A hand consisting of quads and a wild card.
five-card draw	Poker variant where players receive face down five cards and exchange either cards in one draw to form the best possible hand
five-card stud	A game where players receive one face down card and a face-up card. Betting rounds occur when drawing the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th revealed cards.
fixed limit, flat limit	Ruling in limit poker where betting amounts are capped in each round.
flash	Revealing a card to all players that were accidentally exposed to one or more players.
flat call	A situation where a player is expected to raise but calls instead.
float	Calling a raise with a low-valued hand on the pre-flop and will bet on the river to bluff other players to fold.
floorman	A casino staff who sets the ruling of a poker game and has the final say on any outcome.
floorman, floorperson	Employees who manage the poker games in a casino by setting the rules.
flop	Three community cards dealt in Texas Hold'em and Omaha and where the second betting round occurs.
flop game	A poker variant that deals community cards at the center of the table such as Texas Hold'em and Omaha.
flop games	Games like Texas Hold'em and Omaha with central community cards.
flush	Hands consisting of five cards with the same suit such as 8♠ 2♠ J♠ 5♠ K♠.
flush draw	Forming a flush by drawing the required hand from a community card.
fold	Giving up a hand on a player's turn.
fold equity	Refers to the pot a player wins by making a bet while every opponent folds.
forced bet	Required bets a player needs to post each round including blinds and ante.
forced-move	Occurs in multi-table tournaments where a player needs to fill a vacant sit in one of the feeder tables.
forward motion	A ruling where players are required to bet the chips they are carrying towards the pot even if they have yet to drop their chips.
foul	Hands that are removed from play due to one or more issues like having more or fewer cards.
fouled hand	Invalidated hands due to irregularities such as dropping them to the floor or it consists of more or few cards.
four of a kind	A hand consisting of four similar cards like 5♠ 5♦ 5♣ 5♥ J♥.
four-flush	An incomplete hand consisting of four cards with the same suit.
four-straight	Hands that contain four cards with a sequential order such as 8♠ 9♦ 10♦ J♣, missing one card to create a straight.
fourth street	Refers to the turn card in Texas Hold'em and Omaha, which is the fourth community card.
free card	Card players draw without calling any raises in the previous betting round.
free roll	Prizes players can win without paying an entry fee, including cash rewards in freeroll poker tournaments.
freeroll	Winning a pot without staking any money.
freezeout	Poker tournaments or table-stakes cash game that does not allow rebuys.
full bet rule	Ruling where a player needs to fill the required amount to perform a raise.
full house	A hand consisting of triple and pair cards.
full house, full boat, full hand, full	Forming a hand with three cards of the same value and two cards of the same value as 4♠ 4♦ 4♣ 9♣ 9♠.
full ring	A poker cash game consisting of six or more participants.
gap hand	Hole cards in Texas Hold'em where two cards have a significant gap in raking like 10♦ 3♥.
get away	A scenario where a player with a high-valued hand folds to an opponent with an even stronger hand.
going north	Adding more chips to the game in secret, increasing a player's chip stack to more than the table limit.
going south	Act of taking away chips from the table while the game is ongoing.
grinder	A professional player who makes a living through small profitable wins made from several poker games.
gut shot	Forming an inside straight draw in Texas Hold'em or Omaha.
gut shot, gutshot, gutter	Acquiring the 5^th card required for a straight from the turn or river.
guts, guts to open	Poker variants with a progressive pot that keeps growing until there is one winner.
gutshot	Completing an inside straight in Texas Hold'em with a draw, usually on the turn or river.
gutshot straight	An inside straight consisting of two hole cards, two flop cards, and a turn card.
gypsy	Qualifying for the pot by posting the blind and not raising.
h. o. r. s. e	Poker tables with a multi-gaming format. H.O.R.S.E. the name comes from Texas Hold'em, Omaha, Razz, seven-card stud, seven-card stud high-low split-eight or better.
half bet rule	Ruling where players are required to raise the normal bet amount when they make a bet more than half the minimum amount.
hand	Five sets of cards in poker that form various rankings like A♥ 5♣ 5♠ 5♦ 2♥ for three of a kind or 6♥ 6♦ 7♣ Q♥ 7♠ for two of a kind.
hand history	A tabulation of a player's previous hands, which is a feature of certain online poker rooms.
hand-for-hand	Ruling in multi-table tournaments to stop players stalling for participants' elimination where the last few tables must complete one hand before dealing the next hand.
hanger	A sign of bottom deck dealing when the bottom card sticks out from the deck.
heads up	A scenario where two players are competing for the pot.
heads up poker	Occurs when only two people are playing for the pot.
heads-up	Situations where the pot is at stake between two players.
heater	Refers to a situation where a player wins a series of large pots.
hero	A term for a player referring to themselves while their opponents are referred to as villains.
hero call	A scenario where a player makes a large bet and beats an opponent with a weak hand.
high card	A hand without any pairs or connecting cards with its highest kicker card being the only valuation.
high hand, high	A hand with the highest possible value in the current round.
high-low	Poker variants with a split pot.
high-low, high-low split	A poker game with two pots where one prize goes to the highest hand and another for the lowest hand.
hijack seat	Refers to the second rightmost position from the button position where a player can "highjack" the blinds with a pre-flop raise.
hit	Occurs when a player creates a hand with the flop.
hit and run	A situation where a new player scores one or more large pots and promptly leaves the game.
hold 'em	A poker game where players receive two face-down cards and dealers place five revealed cards at the table center.
hole cam	Cameras in poker tables that show audiences a player's hand during a game's broadcast.
hole cards	Facedown cards dealt to players.
hole cards, hole	Refers to facedown cards given to players during any poker games.
hollywood	Attempting to get a reaction from a player by doing overemphasized actions.
home game	Poker games held in a player's home or private establishment.
horse	A player financially backed by another person who expects a share of the winnings.
house	A term for the casino or establishment that hosts card games.
icm	Short for the independent chip model, which assigns value to chips used in poker games.
ignorant end, idiot end	Forming a straight hand from the flop with the least value around the table.
implied odds	Calculated odds similar to pot odds with the inclusion of estimated future bets.
implied pot odds, implied odds	Estimated odds that take into account the chips a player can win in succeeding rounds.
improve	Increasing the value of a player's hand through a draw or exchanging the ones they are holding.
in position	Refers to a player who is the last to act in a betting round.
in the middle	Occurs on poker games that have multiple blinds where a player posts a blind regardless of the turn order.
in the money	Players who ranked high enough to receive a share of the prize pool.
in turn	A player whose turn is coming after the current player finishes their turn.
inside straight	Forming a straight from a turn draw during Texas Hold'em.
inside straight draw	Drawing a turn card that completes a player's straight.
insurance	A side bet between players that acts as a protection against an all-in bet with a winning hand.
irregular declaration	Motions a player performs that falsely shows an intended action like knocking on the table once to check.
irregularity	Situations that require dealer actions like a player receiving more or fewer cards.
isolation	Raising with the intention of pressuring other players to fold, opening a situation for a showdown between a targeted opponent.
itm	Short for "in the money", a term for tournament participants who ranked high enough to get a part of the prize pool.
jackpot	A cash reward for meeting conditions such as forming a specific quad hand.
jackpot poker	Special prizes offered by casinos to players who lost with a strong hand.
jacks-or- better	A poker variant where a player can only open the betting round when they get a pair of jacks or higher valued cards.
joker	A wild card in certain poker variants that can substitute other cards such as aces
juice	Refers to the cut a casino or cardroom collects from the pot.
junk	A hand with little to no value.
kansas city lowball	A lowball poker variant where the lowest possible hand is the strongest.
keep them honest	Calls a player makes when they suspect their opponent is bluffing.
key card	Drawing a specific card that completes a hand.
key hand	A hand that can drastically improve or worsen a player's position in poker tournaments.
kick it	An act of increasing a bet.
kicker	An unpaired hole card that can determine the final value of a hand.
kill button	A button to indicate which player can execute a "kill hand".
kill game, kill pot	A fixed-limit poker game with a kill blind feature that requires a player to pay 2x or 1.5x the big blind when they meet a specific condition.
kill hand	An event during kill games that increases a player's blind bet post.
kill pot	Pot made from kill blinds or increased blinds for players triggering the "kill hand" event.
kitty	An agreed share of the pot in home games to buy drinks, food, and other items.
knock	Completing a turn without betting.
kojak	A hole hand that consists of a king and jack.
ladies	A term for queen pairs.
lag	A semi-aggressive style where a player consistently makes light bets.
lammer	Tokens with labels that include the dealer button.
last to act	Refers to the right most position of the dealer who continues the betting round by raising or ending it with a fold, check or call.
late position	A position to the right of a dealer where a player waits for everyone to finish their turn
lay down your hand	A term for folding or surrendering a hand.
laydown	Folding when a player believes an opponent has a better hand.
lead	Refers to the first bet made during a betting round.
leg-up, leg-up button	A button in a kill game to indicate a player winning the previous pot.
level	A term for the increasing blind tiers during a poker tournament.
light	A least-valued hand that ranks slightly higher than others such as a 5♠ 3♥ 3♣ 5♦ 9♥.
limit	A set minimum and maximum betting cap.
limit poker	Poker games with a set minimum and maximum bet amount.
limp	Calling to compete for the pot without raising
limp in	A low-risk method for a player to qualify for the pot by calling instead of raising.
limp-reraise	Raising after a limp call in the previous betting round.
limp, limp in	Entering the pot by calling a bet and not raising.
limper	Refers to a player calling instead of raising to minimize the risk.
live bet	A required bet to post on the first betting round.
live blind	Mandatory bet a player posts before the pre-flop.
live card(s)	A draw in stud poker that boosts a hand's strength.
live cards	Two or more cards increasing a player's chance of winning a stud poker game.
live game	Poker sessions where players are consistently active in each betting round.
live hand	Hands that have yet to fold and can qualify for the pot.
live one	A beginner who consistently plays many hands despite the lack of experience.
live poker	Poker games played in real venues such as casinos and card rooms.
lock up	A method for players to indicate that they are taking one of the cash game sits by placing their chips or other belongings on the table.
look	Calling a bet to finish the last betting round and initiating the showdown.
loose	Refers to a style where a person frequently plays many hands of varying ranges.
low	A card with the lowest possible rank.
lowball	Poker variant where the winning hand is the least ranking one.
m-ratio	A ratio base on the player's chip stack and betting cost of the current round to indicate which strategies are ideal for specific situations.
made hand	Forming a strong hand that does not require any draw to improve its chances of beating other players.
main pot	A pot where all players are competing for while a separate side pot is set for players who goes all-in.
make	Process of shuffling a deck.
maniac	A player who plays loosely and aggressively with a wide range of hands.
mark	A novice that other players are targeting for easy profit.
match the pot	Betting the current value of the pot.
micro-limit	Refers to poker games with the lowest stakes in the establishment.
middle pair	Forming a pair with a community card that has a mid-range value.
middle position	Refers to any position between the early and late positions.
minimum buy-in	Least amount required to pay before joining a game.
misdeal	Invalid deal due to irregularities.
missed blind	Blinds that are not paid due to a player leaving the game.
monster	Signifying a player with a massive chip stack even they accumulated with a small one at the start of the game.
move in	Going all-in in a no-limit poker game.
muck	Folding or surrendering a hand.
multi-table tournament (mtt)	Poker games that require many tables to accommodate every participant.
multi-way pot	A pot that contains every player's chips.
negative freeroll	A scenario where a player checks and is expecting to call an all-in bet from an opponent, but the opponent responds with a check instead.
nit	Players who only play strong hands.
no limit	A game where players have the freedom to bet any amount of chips in one round.
no-limit	Ruling that allows bets without any limit.
nosebleed stakes	Cash games with the highest possible stakes in the establishment.
nothing	A scenario where a player can only get a high card hand.
nothing card	Community cards that a player cannot use to form a hand.
nut hand (the nuts)	Refers to a winning hand in one round.
nut low	Having a winning hand in high-low split games that consist of low ranked cards.
nuts	Money professional poker players make to sustain their career.
odds	Refers to the likelihood of winning a game with the current hand.
off-suit	Series of cards with different suits.
offsuit	Hole hand consisting of differently suited cards.
omaha	A poker variant where players form a hand from two of four hole cards to the five community cards on the table.
on the button	Designation for a player who is at the dealer button.
one-chip rule	Calling any bets in a live game with one chip of higher denomination.
one-ended straight draw	Drawing a specific card to form a one-ended straight consisting of ace, king, queen, jack, and 10 cards as well as five, four, three, two, ace cards.
one-eyed royals	High-ranked cards consisting of jacks, queens, and kings.
one-gap	Two sequential hole cards that are two ranks apart like 2♠ 4♦ or K♣ J♠.
open	Making the first bet in one round.
open card	A face-up card revealed to other players.
open limp	A player calling the blinds first.
open pair	Face-up cards that form a pair.
open-ended	Refers to four sequential cards that can form a straight hand with a draw of either one card at both sequential ranking ends.
open-ended straight	A straight that players can form with one card from the bottom or top rank of the hand.
open-ended straight draw	Drawing one of two cards that can create an open-ended straight.
open-ended straight draw, open-ended	Straights that require drawing one of two cards to fill the bottom or top sequential rank.
open-handed	Poker variants where one or more of a player's cards are revealed to others around the table.
openers	Refers to the person voluntarily betting first in one round.
option	An opportunity for players posting the live blind to raise.
orbit	Occurs when everyone at the table calls the big blind.
out	Cards yet to be drawn that boosts a player's chance of winning one round.
out button	Discs to indicate a player skipping one betting round and will play the next one.
out of position	Positions in between those who act first and last in one betting round.
outrun	An event where a player wins against an opponent's hand.
outs	Potential cards that improve a player's odds when drawn.
outside straight draw	Refers to a doubled ended straight formed with a draw of a top or bottom ranking card.
over-cards	Flop, turn, or river cards that have a higher value than the hole pocket pair a player has.
over-pair	Pocket pairs that has a better value than any community cards.
overbet	Occurs in no-limit games when a player's bet is larger than the pot value.
overcall	Players calling a bet that other people called earlier.
overcard	Community cards that have better value than a player's hole pocket pairs.
overpair	When a player's pocket pair ranks better than community cards.
overs	An opportunity for players to increase the stakes during limit poker games.
paint	A term for one-eyed royal cards in lowball poker variants.
paints	Refers to the jack, queen, and king cards.
pair	A hand with two similar cards such as 6♠ 8♣ 8♥ K♦ 2♠.
pass	Folding or surrendering a hand.
passive	A method where players only check and call while rarely raising.
pat	Creating a winning hand on the flop or on the initial hand in draw poker variants.
pay off	Calling a bet even if a player believes they have the winning hand or not.
penny ante	A term for cheap low-stake games.
perfect	A winning hand in any poker variants that does not require any improvement.
pick-up	When a staff takes a player's money after buying chips.
picture cards	A term for royal cards including jacks, queens, and kings.
play back	Re-raising or raising a player's bet.
play the board	Entering the showdown phase while having a hand that did not improve with the community cards.
playing the board	Entering the showdown phase while having a hand that did not improve with the community cards.
pocket	A term for hole cards or cards in a face-down position.
pocket aces	Hole cards consisting of a pair of aces.
pocket cards	A player's face-down cards.
pocket pair	Forming a pair with the hole cards
pocket rockets	A term for holes with an ace pair.
poker face	An expressionless face on a player.
poker table	A physical table where poker games are held.
polarized	Players who will play either top to low ranged hands.
position	Refers to the player order in one betting round.
position bet	Raising or betting to take advantage of a player's current position.
post	Paying a mandatory bet such as the blinds and ante.
post dead	Posts a player must cover when they miss paying a previous small blind.
post oak bluff	Small-sized bets in no-limit and pot-limit poker variants that allow players to bluff other opponents while taking a small risk.
pot	Collection of every bet around the table and what players are competing for.
pot limit	Poker games where players cannot bet more than the total pot amount.
pot odds	A calculated ratio of the cost to call a bet and the pot amount.
pot-committed	An event where a player cannot fold due to the pot amount in no-limit poker games.
pot-limit	Ruling in a poker game where players are limited to the pot value on their bets.
pre-flop	First round of betting where players receive their hole cards.
price	Bet players need to call before reaching the next street for a crucial draw.
probe bet	Small leading bet after the flop to stop others from making a large raise.
prop	An employee of a casino who participates to keep live games active while using house money.
prop, proposition player	Staff paid by the casino per the hour to join card tables and keep them active.
protect	Raising while having a hand with a decent range and a good draw probability.
protected pot	Low chances of bluffing to win a showdown due to many active hands on the table.
protection, protect	A player's bet to increase the pot value and profit out of a hand with a slightly strong range.
purse	A poker tournament's prize pool.
push	Betting every chip from a player's stack.
put down	An act of putting down one's hand to fold.
put on	Speculating an opponent's hand base on their betting patterns and other actions.
put the clock (on someone)	A player requesting to place a time limit on another player's turn.
quads	A hand with four similar cards such as 7♠ 4♥ 7♦ 7♥ 7♣.
qualifier	Forming a qualifying hand in high-low poker variants.
qualifier, qualifying low	A hand that satisfies the minimum qualifying requirement for low hand games.
quartered	Refers to qualifying for a quarter of the pot amount during high-low split games.
rabbit hunt	Occurs when a player requests to see the cards meant for the turn and river after ending the game on the flop.
raccoon	A negative term for an inexperienced player.
race	A close match between two players who have nearly 50% chance of winning the pot.
rack	A stack of 100 chips.
rag	Obtaining a hand with little to no value.
ragged	Flop cards that did not boost anyone's hand.
rail	A term for spectators or audiences during poker tournaments.
railbird	People or crowds watching a poker match.
rainbow	Cards of various suits that minimizes any player's chance of a flush.
raise	An act of increasing the bet.
rake	Commission fee cut from a portion of the pot.
rakeback	A promotional rebate that returns a part of the player's entry fee or rake.
rakeback pro	Professional poker players who utilize Rakeback promotions to sustain their lifestyle without having to win every match.
range of hands	Refers to the possible hands all players around the table are holding.
rank	A term for the card's value.
rap	A knocking motion to indicate a check.
rathole	Taking out some of a player's chip from the table during a game.
razz	A seven-card stud variant where the winning hands are the ones with a low range.
re-buy	Returning to the tournament by paying the entry fee again.
re-raise	Raising instead of calling a previous raise.
rebuy	Paying the entry fee again to re-enter a tournament.
redeal	Dealing the cards again after an irregularity occurred.
redraw	When a player draws to improve a strong hand further.
represent	A player bluffing others into thinking they are playing with a specific hand.
reraise	Occurs when a player raises a previous player's bet instead of calling it.
ring game	A term for poker games held in physical casinos or venues.
river	Fifth community card in Texas Hold'em and Omaha.
rock	Refers to people playing a tight game where they only bet with strong hands.
roll your own	An opportunity for players to pick which cards are revealed in seven-card stud.
rolled-up trips	An event when a player gets a three of a kind from the first draw during seven-card stud.
round of betting	Phases of a poker game where players call or increase the bet.
rounder	A term for professional players who consistently participate in high-stakes poker tables.
rounders	Players with extensive experience and skills who frequent high-stakes tables.
royal cards	16 cards consisting of jacks, queens, and kings in a deck.
royal flush	Most valuable hand possible consisting of a top-ranking straight with the same suits like A♥ K♥ Q♥ J♥ 10♥.
run it twice, running it twice	A deal made mostly in private settings where players draw the community cards twice after going all-in before the river.
runner	Completing a hand with a draw on the turn and river.
runner-runner	A situation where a turn and river draw completes a player's hand.
rush	Winning a series of consecutive games.
sandbag	A betting method where players with strong hand checks and calls each betting round while raising on the river.
satellite	Poker tournament prizes that offer a free buy-in to tournaments with higher prize pools.
scare card	A revealed card in stud poker games that increases the possibility of a player having a strong hand.
scoop	Winning the high and low pots during high-low split poker variants.
seating list	Queuing line up for poker tables that are in maximum capacity.
second pair	Pairs that are ranked between the highest and lowest range in poker games with community cards.
see	A player calling a raise.
sell	Betting a small portion of the maximum amount in spread limit games to entice other players in calling.
semi-bluff	Playing a low-range hand with a good probability of a draw improving it.
set	Forming a three of a kind hand with a pocket pair.
set-up	A new deck that has been ordered by rank and suit, allowing everyone to confirm the deck contains all 52 cards before the shuffle.
seven-card stud	A poker variant that involves three face-down cards and four face-up cards given to each player.
sevens rule	Ruling in lowball poker variants that require players to bet instead of checking and raising when they have a seven-low hand or lower.
seventh street	Last betting round of seven-card stud and stud 8 or better poker variants.
shark	A term for a professional poker player.
shill	A casino employee using house money to play with casino patrons and keep the card games active.
shills	Proposition players paid by the hour to engage with other players in poker games and return all winnings to the house.
shoe	A deck holder dealers use to distribute cards in live games.
shootout	An event where all remaining participants of a poker tournament compete in the last table.
short buy	Paying the minimum buy-in for a no-limit poker table.
short stack	Having fewer chips than other players around the table.
shorthanded	A table intended for 10 players having only half or fewer participants.
shove	A motion of pushing every chip towards the pot indicating an all-in bet.
showdown	Occurs after the final betting round where players' hands are evaluated to determine the winner.
side game	Cash games where eliminated tournament players and other people compete for cash prizes.
side pot	A pot containing a player's all-in bet and chips from people who called it while the main pot contains all additional raises.
sit and go	Poker tournaments that start when all vacancies are filled and ends when a player wins every chip in the game.
sit-and-go	A tournament format with a shared prize pool awarded to the qualifying players.
sixth street	Refers to the fourth community card in seven-card stud.
slow play	Profiting from a strong hand by calling and checking every street while betting on the river or fifth street.
slow roll	Pausing after a showdown to reveal a strong or winning hand.
small blind	Required post that is half the amount of the big blind.
smooched	Obtaining a hand with a slightly better range than the opponent.
smooth call	Missed opportunity to get value out of a strong hand by calling instead of raising.
snap call	A player who calls immediately without any consideration.
snow	Bluffing with a losing hand during draw poker.
soft break	Breaking chips with large denominations into smaller ones during buy-ins.
soft-play	Controlled bets by two or more players to prevent one of them to lose chips.
solid	A player who frequently bets on top range hands only.
speed limit	A hand consisting of a 5 pair.
splash the pot	Haphazardly tossing chips to the pot.
split	A situation where two or more players win the pot.
split pot	Players sharing the pot prize for having hands with equal values.
split two pair	Two pairs with one pair formed with the player's hole and one formed on the flop such as a hole with K♠ 7♥ and the flop with 8♥ 7♠ 8♦.
spread	Refers to a game's minimum and maximum betting amount.
spread-limit	Poker games with a limit range that changes in between betting rounds.
squeeze play	Re-raising a bet with a decent ranged hand to bluff players into folding during no-limit Texas Hold'em.
stack	A player's total chip amount.
stakes	Refers to the buy-in fee for a game.
staking	Sponsors who finance a player and expect a return on investment.
stand pat	Declining to exchange any of the first five cards dealt in draw poker to avoid degrading a hand or bluffing other players.
starting hand	First set of cards players receive at the start of each game such as the two hole cards in Texas Hold'em.
stay	Calling a bet to stay in the game.
steal	Raising with a nearly losing hand to bluff players who posted the blinds and ante into folding.
steam	Frustrated and irritated players who cannot make a sound judgment or strategy.
steel wheel	Forming an ace-five straight with the cards having similar suits such as A♥ 2♥ 3♥ 4♥ 5♥.
stop and go	An aggressive playstyle such as raising pre-flop and making a large bet on the flop or turn.
straddle	Raising the blinds before the first betting round.
straddle bet	Players posting twice the blind amount.
straight	Five cards forming a ranking sequence such as 4♠ 5♥ 6♠ 7♦ 8♥.
straight flush	Obtaining cards with a sequential rank and similar suits like 5♦ 6♦ 7♦ 8♦ 9♦.
strategy card	Poker guides printed on a card that can fit in most wallets.
street	Refers to the betting rounds in a game.
string bet	Raising by placing a portion of chips to the pot at a time instead of putting the entire bet amount to the pot in one motion.
structure	Set limits on bets, blinds, and ante for specific poker games.
structured	Betting policy for certain poker tables such as a change of spread on each betting round.
stub	Cards in a deck that have yet to be dealt in a game.
stuck	Refers to a player losing the current game.
stud	Poker variants where players receive face-up and face-down cards.
stud games	Poker games involving the inclusion of revealed cards assigned to each player.
subscription poker	Online poker service with a monthly fee, allowing players to compete for real money.
suck out	A situation where a strong hand gets beaten by an underdog's hand with a good draw.
suited	Cards with a similar suit.
suited connectors	Hole cards in Texas Hold'em with the same suit.
super satellite	Multi-table games where players compete for a free buy-in to satellite games that offer a ticket to major tournaments.
table stakes	Ruling where players cannot add their own money while playing a hand.
tag	A strategic method of playing aggressively with a wide range of hands while playing strong ones tightly to make opponents second guess themselves.
tainted outs	Undealt cards that improve a player and their opponent's hands.
tank, in the tank	Players taking a long time to contemplate their turn.
tell	Psychological changes in behavior indicate what a player is feeling, giving others a hint on a player's hand strength.
texas hold'em	Poker variant that involves two face-down cards given to players and five community cards dealt on the table.
texture	Probability of the community cards in forming draws based on their rank or suit coordination.
third man walking	A status of a player who is the third person to leave the table. Third man walking players can rejoin when they go back to their sit within the set time limit.
third street	Refers to the first betting round of seven card stud.
thirty miles	A three of a kind hand with 10 cards.
three bet, three betting	A term for the third bet or first re-raise in the first betting round.
three of a kind	Creating a hand consisting of three similarly ranked cards such as J♥ J♦ 8♥ 4♣ J♣.
tight	Players who only bet on strong hands.
tilt	A negative mental state that has players disregard strategy when playing hands.
time	Request for suspending a game to give a player time to think about their actions.
timer	A countdown timer that determines a period when the blinds will increase during poker tournaments.
to go	Refers to the amount needed for a player to call a bet and stay in the game.
TOC	Acronym for the tournament of champions.
toke	Tips given to the dealer during live games.
top and bottom	Forming the highest and lowest pairs with the hole and community card such as when a hole is J♠ 2♦ and the community cards are 10♠ 6♥ 8♦ 2♠ 4♥.
top kicker	Having a high ranking card to bolster a player's hand.
top pair	A pair that ranks higher than other pairs in one game
top set	Refers to the best possible three of a kind hand in one game.
top two	Creating a two pairs hand with the community cards that beats the other two pairs hands on the table.
tournament	Poker games with numerous participants.
trap	A player catching opponents by surprise with a bet on the river after checking and calling previous betting rounds.
trey	A term for a 3 pair hand.
treys	Refers to a pair consisting of 3 cards.
trips	A three of a kind hand.
turbo	Feature in a specific poker tournament where the blinds increase faster than the normal rate.
turn	Fourth community card in Texas Hold'em and Omaha.
two pair	A hand consisting of two sets of cards with similar ranks such as 4♥ 5♦ J♣ 4♠ J♦.
under the gun	Refers to the player who is first to act in one betting round.
underdog	A player or hand with the lowest possibility of winning.
underfull	A full house hand consisting of a pair outranking the three of a kind.
up	A designation for the best two pairs.
up card	Face-up cards dealt in community card games.
up the ante	Increasing the game's ante amount.
upcard	Revealed community cards in poker variants.
upstairs	An act of raising or increasing the bet.
upswing	A period when a player is on a lucky streak by winning consecutive games.
value	A bet intended to increase the pot value by enticing opponents in calling.
value bet	A betting strategy meant for making players call or raise.
variance	An evaluation of a player's bankroll change based on their losses and wins period.
vigorish, vig	A percentage of the pot that a casino or house collects.
villain	Refers to a player's opponent.
vpip	Acronym for "voluntary put money in pot.", which tracks a player's bet on the pot after the flop.
wake up	A player made aware of holding a strong hand after a number of bets took place.
walk	Occurs when everyone folds on the blinds.
walking sticks	A term for a 7 card pair.
wash	Shuffling the deck by placing the cards face down and scrambling all of them before they go through the riffle shuffle.
weak ace	Hole cards consisting of an ace and a low ranking card such as a 2♣.
weak player	A person new to poker who tends to make bad plays.
webcam poker	Online poker games with a live stream staff who deals the cards.
wet board	Community cards that allow more than one player to create a strong hand.
wheel	A straight consisting of low ranking cards such as A♥ 2♣ 3♥ 4♦ 5♥.
wild card	A separate card that can substitute as any card when forming a hand.
window card	Revealed cards in various poker games such as the community cards in Texas Hold'em and Omaha.
worst hand	A hand that has the lowest odds of winning.
wrap	An opportunity of a straight draw in Omaha hold'em from nine or more cards that have yet to be drawn.
WSOP	Acronym for the World Series of Poker, a popular annual poker tournament held in Las Vegas, Nevada.