Poker Glossary
A
Aces Full: A hand with three Aces and any Pair. It is a Full House with Aces.
Ace High: A hand where there are no poker hands and single cards determine the outcome. Ace is the highest card so Ace High wins the pot.
Action: When decisions are to be made. To make a decision to check, bet, fold or raise. It can also refer to a hand with lots of callers or raisers.
Add On: The opportunity to purchase more chips when the re-buy period ends. This is a special rule used in some tournaments. The players are all given an opportunity to buy some more chips. This is the final opportunity to buy chips in these tournaments. After this the only way to get chips is to win them.
All In: The act of betting all of ones chips at once.
Ante: Some rules require players to place a small ante, or bet, into the pot before the cards are even handed out. This helps get the pot started.
B
Back Door: A hand where both the Turn Card and the River Card are used to make the hand.
Bad Beat: When one player is beaten by another player who got lucky. Bad Beat implies that one player had a superior hand and by looking at the odds, should have won, but did not due to another player getting really lucky.
Bet: Placing chips in the pot.
Betting the Pot: A bet that is the same size as the pot. Ex, if there was $200 in the pot and when it gets to a Player they decide to make a $200 bet, thereby matching the pot.
Big Blind: Some tournaments use a blind system. The big blind is 2x as big as the blind. The big blind is normally the same size as the minimum bet to see the hand if there are no raisers. The big blind rotates clockwise around the table and only one player is required to pay the big blind before the cards are dealt each round. Another player is required to pay the small blind. The small blind is always on the Big Blinds right.
Big Slick: In Texas Holdem Big Slick is when Ace King is dealt to a player.
Blind: Some tournaments have blinds. It is a rule that specifies that two players, the ones immediately to the left of the dealer must post blinds, or bets, before the cards are dealt to anyone.
Blind Raise: When a player raises without first looking at his own cards.
Bluff: A very important part of poker, the bluff. This is any act, especially of high betting, where one player tries to make another player believe they have the best hand when they don’t. The player with the weaker hand is trying to get the player with the stronger hand to fold, thereby winning with a losing hand.
Bottom Pair: The lowest paired hand on the table.
Brick & Mortar: A real life casino, not an online one.
Bring In: A forced bet made during the first betting round by the player with the lowest card.
Bullets: When a player has a pair of Aces. It may also be referred to as Pocket Rockets.
Burn Card: The card a dealer discards from the deck.
Button: The dealers’ button indicates the dealer of each hand. It is a small chip with special designation that is moved clockwise after each hand.
Buy In: The amount of money required to buy chips and play.
C
Call: Betting the minimum amount of chips necessary to continue playing in the hand.
Check: Neither betting nor folding. Only works when it is the first player to act in a betting round or if no one has made a bet. Everyone may check through the betting round.
Check Raise: A player that checks the first time and then raises after another player bets
Community Cards: The cards that are dealt face up for all players to use
Cowboys: A pair of Kings.
D
Dead Man’s Hands: Aces and Eights, two pair of each. Wild Bill was shot while playing this hand. In case you’re wondering… he died.
Dead Money: Money contributed to the pot by a player that has folded and has no chance of winning it back.
Door Card: In Stud Poker this is the first card that is face up.
Doyle Brunson: named after the man that won the poker championship two years in a row with a 10 2. Now it is very famous and any hand with 10 and 2 is called a Doyle Brunson.
Drop: Another word for fold.
Deuces: A pair of 2’s.
E
Early Position: The first position to act in a betting round.
F
Fifth Street: This is the river card. The last card (5th) to be dealt face up.
Flop: The first three community cards that are dealt face up in Texas Holdem and Omaha. Everyone can use these cards.
Flush: Five cards with the same suit.
Flush Draw: A player with four cards with the same suit, hoping a fifth card of that suit is dealt during the next round(s) to make his flush.
Fold: To surrender your cards and any chips placed in the pot.
Forced Bet: A bet that is forced (Player has no choice) to start the pot. Blinds are a forced bet.
Four of a Kind: A hand that contains all four cards of a single number or face
Fourth Street: The turn card. The card that is dealt after the 3 community cards. The fourth community card dealt.
Free Card: When no one bets and everyone is able to check and see the next card for free.
Full House: A hand that has a Three of a Kind and a Pair.
G
Gut Shot Straight Draw: The chance to hit a straight when all that is missing is the inside card. Ex, Player has 3 4 6 7. The only card needed to make the hand is a 5.
H
Heads Up: 1 on 1 Poker Play.
High Card: When no other poker hand is made, High Card will win the pot. Ace is the highest card in poker.
Hole Cards: The two cards that each player has face down.
House: The casino.
I
Inside Straight Draw: Same as Gut Shot Straight Draw.
In The Money: Refers to any rank in a tournament that is paid.
J
Jackpot Poker: A game where the casino gives a player who lost with a big hand a special pot.
Jacks or Better: A game where a pair of jacks are required to bet.
K
Kicker: A card that is not paired up, but is used to make a hand. Example; A person with two pair, K K 5 5 9, has two pair Kings & Fives with a Nine Kicker. If two people had the same two pair the Kicker would be used to determine the winner.
Knock: Some players knock the table to indicate a check.
L
Ladies: A pair of Queens.
Late Position: One of the last positions to act/decide whether to bet, raise, check or fold.
Lay Down: The same as folding.
Lead: The first bettor.
Limit Poker: A form of poker with a max bet. In No Limit poker, the opposite of Limit, you can go all in and bet all your chips at any point.
Limper: When a player just calls and it is relatively cheap to see the flop. These players may have weak hands.
Live Cards: Cards that are still in play.
Live Hand: Any hand that can win the pot. Our favorite hand is a live one!
Loose: A player who bets on a lot of hands, even weak hands.
M
Main Pot: The pot everyone is aiming for. There are also side pots which occur when an all in player does not have enough chips to bet for the entire pot.
Muck: To fold a hand without showing them.
N
No Limit: A game where anyone can bet all their chips during any betting round they desire.
Nuts: The best hand that can’t be beat.
O
Odds: The percent chance of getting cards.
Off-suit: A hand with cards of varying suits.
Open Ended Straight: A set of cards that only require one more card, either higher or lower then the rest, to make a straight. Ex, A player has 3456. He will make his straight if he gets a 2 or a 7. It is open ended because a card at either end will make a straight.
P
Paints: A face card.
Pair: Two cards of the same value.
Pass: means to fold.
Playing the Board: When the best hand is the five community cards located in the centre of the board.
Pocket Cards: The cards the player holds face down.
Pot Committed: When a player has most of his or her chips in the pot and is therefore forced to continue betting on the hand or be left with very few chips.
Pocket Rockets: A hand with a pair of Aces.
Position: Where a player is sitting at a table. The position changes every round. This does not mean that the players get up and move. It means that the dealer chip moves and the cards are dealt starting with a different player each time, in a clockwise manner.
Post: Commonly called posting the blinds. This is where a player bets the forced bet.
Pot: The money that is at stake to be won by the hand.
Pot Limit: Some games only allow bets to be as big as the pot.
Put Down: Same as folding.
Q
Qualifier: The minimum requirement to meet specifications to qualify for a low hand in Omaha Hi/Low.
R
Rack: The tray that contains chips.
Rail: The edge of the poker table.
Raise: To bet more than the other players, forcing them to either bet more or fold.
Rake: The casinos cut of the action.
Re-buy: Some tournaments allow re-buys for a certain period of time. This means that even if you go all in and lose, you may buy more chips and stay in the tournament.
Represent: When a player acts as if he is holding a certain hand.
Re-Raise: Raising a player who has just raised.
River: The last community card that is dealt in Texas Holdem.
Rounders: A great movie about poker.
Royal Flush: The hand every poker player dreams about.
Runner: When both the turn card and the river card allow someone to make their hand.
S
Satellite: Small tournaments with a low buy in that gives the winner the opportunity to join a much larger tournament.
Shills: People who are paid by the casino to play. They create interest in a game and then others come to play.
Short Stack: A player who has the lowest number of chips at the table and is expected to lose next.
Showdown: When all players have played to the end and must now show their cards to determine a winner of the pot.
Slow Play: When a player acts weak with a very strong hand.
Small Blind: The player immediately clockwise from the dealer button must post a small blind, usually ½ of the blind.
Split: A Tie.
Stack: The chip stack.
Straight: Five cards in a row.
Straight Flush: Same as above but all cards are same suit.
T
Tell: A clue about a player’s hand.
Three of a Kind: Three cards that have the same value.
Tight: A player who is only playing the occasional pot, usually just the best cards.
Tilt: When a player is playing recklessly after losing a big hand.
Top Pair: The highest paired hand.
Treys: Pair of 3’s.
Trips: Means triples. Same as Three of a Kind.
Turn: The fourth card that is dealt face up in Texas Holdem.
Two Pair: A hand consisting of two pairs of cards.
U
Up card: A card that is dealt face up.
V
W
X
Y
Z
