Do you know your flop from your gut-shot? Or your kicker from your nuts? No need to be confused. Learn the terms below and you'll soon be talking like a professional.
All-In
When a player bets all of his remaining chips at the table. Any subsequent bets will be in a side pot and he will not be involved in this side pot. If his hand is the highest then he will win the main pot, but not the side pot.
Ante
A set amount posted before the start of a hand by all players
Backdoor
To catch both the turn and river card to complete a drawing hand. For instance, suppose you have As-7s. The flop comes Ad-6c-4s. You bet and are called. The turn is the Ts, which everybody checks, and then the river is the 2s. You've made a "backdoor" flush. See also "runner"
Bad Beat
A term to describe an unlucky situation, where your strong hand is beaten.
Belly Buster
A draw and/or catch to an Inside Straight.
Big Blind
The player to the dealers left posts a small blind, (a compulsory bet) equal to half the small bet, the player to his left places the Big Blind, equal to the small bet.
Big Slick
A nickname for the starting hand, Ace-King in Hold 'Em (suited or not).
Blank
A card that doesn't seem to affect the standings in the hand. For example in Hold 'Em, if the flop is As-Jd-Ts, then a turn card of 2h would be considered a blank.
Board
The community cards on the table.
Boat
A full house
Bring-In
The forced bet made on the first round of betting by the player who is dealt the lowest card showing in Stud games (highest card in Razz games)
Bubble
The position just before the money in a tournament.
Button
A disc that signifies who is the nominated dealer for this hand. The button moves clockwise around the table after every hand. The player in this position is often referred to as "the button".
Call
This is a bet that matches the current bet.
Calling Station
A term used to describe a player who calls a lot, but doesn't raise or fold much.
Check
If no other bets have been made, you can check (pass), and wait to see if anyone else will bet. If everyone checks, then play moves to the next round.
Community Cards
These are cards that are dealt to the table. All players can use these cards to complete a five-card hand.
Cut-off
The position / player to the right of the button / dealer
Dead Money
- Money contributed to a pot by a player no longer in the pot.
- A player in a tournament who has no realistic chance of winning.
- A very bad player who seems to almost give his chips away.
Facecard
A king, queen, or jack
Family Pot
A pot in which all the players at the table are involved.
Fish
A weak player, who loses a lot of money.
Flop
The first three community cards in Hold'Em or Omaha.
Fold
To throw your cards in, i.e. surrender your hand / decide your hand is not worth playing anymore.
Freeze out
A poker tournament or format with no rebuys. Once a player is out of chips, he is out of the game.
Gut-Shot
To draw to and/or hit an inside straight.
Hole cards
The first two cards dealt face down to you, also known as "pocket cards" in Hold'Em.
Implied Odds
Pot odds that do not exist at the moment, but may be included in your calculations because of bets you expect to win on future betting rounds.
Inside Straight Draw
Four cards which require one more card between the top and the bottom card to complete a straight. Players who catch this card make an Inside Straight.
Kicker
Your highest unpaired card to go with a pair, two pair and three of a kind. (Decides the winner in tie situations).
Lay Down
Fold
Limper
A player who enters the pot by calling the Blind or Bring-in (i.e. no previous raise)
Maniac
A loose, aggressive player
Monster
A very strong hand.
Muck
- To throw your cards in without showing them to anyone.
- The pile of folded cards in front of the dealer ("the muck")
Muck
To throw your cards in without showing them to anyone.
Nuts
The best possible hand in any one game. A hand that can not be beat
Outs
The number of cards left in the deck that will improve your hand
Outside Straight / Outside Straight Draw
A hand of 4 consecutive cards that requires either a high or low card to complete the straight. A player who catches one of these cards is said to have made an Outside straight.
Overpair
A pocket pair higher than any community cards on the board. For example in Hold 'em, if you have QQ and the flop comes J-8-3, you have an overpair.
Pass
Fold
Pocket cards
Same as Hole Cards.
Post
Usually a forced bet, like a blind, upon entering the poker game.
Pot
The total of all chips in the centre of the table. This is what players compete for, every hand.
Quads
Four of a kind.
Ragged
A flop (or board) that doesn't appear to help anybody very much. A flop that came down Jd-6h-2c could be consideredc ragged.
Rainbow
A flop that contains three different suits. Can also mean a complete five card board that has no more than two of any suit, thus no flush is possible.
Rake
A small amount of money removed from each pot by the house. For details of PokerShare rake, click here
Raise, Re-Raise
A bet that will increase the level of the current bet.
Rebuy
An option to buy back into a tournament after you've lost all your chips. Tournaments may offer one or more rebuys but some will offer none at all.
River
The last community card in a flop game, also refers to the last card in 7 card stud.
Rock
A passive/ tight player
Runner
Typically said "runner-runner" to describe a hand that was made only by catching the correct cards on both the turn and the river. Example: "He made a runner-runner flush." See also "backdoor".
Satellite
A tournament that does not award cash to its winners, but a seat (or seats) in a subsequent tournament.
Set
Three of a kind. Used most often when 1 card on the board matches the hole card pair.
Shark
A good / strong player who consistently wins money.
Showdown
When betting is finished and the cards are required to be shown, to establish the highest hand.
Slow Play
To play a strong hand weakly in the hope of making more money.
Small Blind
A forced bet made by the player to the dealers left (normally to the value of half a small bet).
Tilt
A change of playing style (usually with negative consequences), after a run of losing money or bad luck.
Trips
Three of a kind. Most commonly used in community card games, when two cards on the board are matched with one hole card.
Turn
The fourth community card in flop games.
Under the Gun
The first player to act in a hand, i.e. the player to the left of the big blind in Hold 'Em and Omaha.
Wheel
A straight from Ace through Five.
