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Basic Poker Terms - Learn Poker Lingo

When you're a beginner it is good to learn the basic poker terms, you do not have to learn the whole poker dictionary but just the basics are always good to know before getting started.

The Basics

ABC Poker
Playing poker without tricks, textbook poker.

All-In
You are considered all-in when you bet all of your chips at the table.

Ante
A small portion of a bet put in the pot by each player before a hand begins. In Texas Hold'em we use blinds, but a game like 7-Card Stud uses Antes.

Bad Beat
I'm sure you know what this is? A bad beat is when you are very likely to win but lose anyway.

Blinds
A forced bet put in usually by two players (the small blind and the big blind) in a game like Holdem.

Bluff
When a player with the worst hand bets out the better hand.

Board
All of the community cards in a game like Texas Hold'em - for example when all the cards are laid out you say "There's a straight on the board" when the board is J-T-9-8-7.

Button
A white button that goes around the table that indicates the dealer and is the best position you can be at in a poker game.

Call
To match the current bet, if someone raises to $10 and you match that $10, then you have called the bet.

Cash-Out
When you withdraw money from a poker room.

Calling Station
A player who calls too much and usually doesn't raise or fold a lot. Also known as a fish.

Check
If you do not want to bet you can check, this basically means to not-bet and you can only do it if no one ahead of you hasn't bet. Pre-flop you can only check when you are in the big blind and it has been limped to you.

Check-Raise
To check and then raise when another player bets.

Cold Call
To call more than one bet, for example if someone in Limit Hold'em raises and another player re-raises and you "call two cold" on the button.

Community Cards
Cards that are layed face-up for everyone to see, the flop, turn and river are community cards. Also known as the board.

Connector
A connected hand like 76, or JT.

Conterfeit
When the board "counterfeits" your hand, for example if you have 65 twopair on a flop of A65 and the turn brings another Ace, your hand is now counterfeited because the best five card hand plays.

Continuation Bet
A bet that is made after a player has raised pre-flop and follows up on the flop. For example if you raise on the button and the big blind calls, now the big blinds checks to you on the flop and you make a standard "continuation bet".

Cut-Off
The cut-off seat is located immediately to the right of the button.

Dealer
The player who usually theoretically is dealing the cards, often in a casino or an online poker room there is a person or machine dealing and there is a need to point out "the Dealer" or "the Button" because the player that is the dealer is always last to act and the blinds are directly to the left of the dealer.

Donkey
A losing player who makes a lot of weird moves and just generally plays bad.

Draw
A hand that has a chance of making the winning hand but is not the best hand yet.

Drawing Dead
When you have 0% chans of winning a hand.

Equity
How much you "own" of a pot, for example a flushdraw usually has around 35% equity all-in on the flop, that means that if you lose, you do not lose the whole pot but 65% of the pot because in the long-run you will win your share.

Gutshot
A straight-draw that has 4 outs, like JT on a 678 flop, you need a 9 to hit your gutshot.

Hijack
The hijack seat is located immediately to the right of the cut-off.

Hole Cards
The cards that are dealt face down to you, your two cards in Hold'em or four cards in Omaha for example.

Implied Odds
Pot odds that exist in the future, it basically means how much you will win when you hit your hand.

Kicker
A card in your hand that breaks a tie, for example if you have AK vs. AJ and the board is AQ754, you win because of your higher kicker (the King).

Maniac
A player who raises, bets and bluffs almost every hand, a crazy person ;-)

Muck
The pile were discarded cards are collected, located in front of the dealer.

Nit
A player who plays incredibly tight. Also known as a rock.

Nuts
A term used for the best possible hand.

Offsuit
Used in Hold'em for a hand like Ace of Hearts and King of Clubs, you have Ace King Offsuit.

Out
A card that will make your hand the best hand. If you have more than one out it is referred to as outs. For example if you have a flushdraw on the flop you have nine outs to win.

Overcard
A card higher than any of the community cards. For example if you have AK on a 256 board you have two overcards.

Overpair
A pocket pair higher than any of the community cards. For example if you have 77 on a 234 board.

Pot Odds
The amount of money in the pot compared to how much you have to call.

Pre-Flop
The betting round before the flop (before the first community cards are laid out).

Raise
To increase the current bet, for example if someone calls $10 and you "raise" to $20.

River
The last community card often a great source of misery and happiness.

Rock
A player who plays extremely tight. Also known as a nit.

Semi-Bluff
When you think you have the worst hand but have a lot of outs to win the hand, so you decide to semi-bluff and hope to win the pot.

Set
When you flop three of a kind with a hand like 66 on a board of for example 269.

Short Stack
A player who has very little chips compared to the rest of the table, usually between 20 and 40 big blinds in a no-limit or pot-limit game.

Showdown
When all of the betting rounds are finished and the cards are turned face up to determine the winner.

Slow Playing / Sandbagging
When you have a very big hand but decide to check and call hoping your opponent will catch something he can give you action with.

Split Pot
When two players have the same hand the pot is split.

Suited
When two cards are of the same suit, like for example Ace of Hearts and King of Hearts, you have Ace King Suited.

Tell
Something your opponent does to give away his hand strength.

Tilt
To let your emotions make bad decisions for you. Players usually tilt after not getting cards or getting bad beat.

Under the Gun
The player that begins the pre-flop betting, seated immediately to the left of the big blind.

 

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