Poker Dictionary
Ever wondered what poker players are talking about when you hear them use words like "big blind" "button" "fifth street" and "river"?
Simple, really. They're using terms associated with poker. As in most casino games, there is a language of its own to describe the action or the players.
Poker is no different, and in fact, has more jargon than any other game. Following is a list you may want to study if you're going to be sitting down anytime soon to play poker.
ACTION: Another term for betting.
ANTE: A small sum of money, placed in the pot by each player. Antes are used in Stud and Draw, but not in Hold'em or Omaha.
BIG BLIND: A bet that must be posted by the player two seats to the left of the button. It is equal to the amount of the smaller betting limit in a game. For example, in a $10-$20 game, the big blind would be $10.
BLIND: Forced bets placed in the pot by the first two players in front of the dealer button, in Hold 'em and Omaha. (See small blind and big blind.)
BLUFF: To bet when you hold a weak hand, hoping that you can intimidate your opponents, forcing them to fold their cards.
BOARD: Usually used to refer to the visible cards on the table, e.g.--looking around the board means looking at the visible cards. In Hold'em and Omaha, everyone shares the same board. In Stud games, each player has his own board.
BRING-IN: In Stud, a bet that must be made on the very first betting round. Usually the player showing the lowest card is forced to make a bet; in some games, the player showing the highest card is forced. The bring-in applies only on the very first betting round, though. On all further rounds, the player showing the highest hand on board has the option
to bet first.
BUTTON: A plastic disc used to represent the dealer position.
CALL: To match a bet that has been made.
CHECK: You have the option to bet, but decline. A player cannot check once someone else has bet; at that point, the player must call, raise, or fold. But if no one has yet bet, a player can check, allowing the betting option to pass to the next player.
CHECK-RAISE: To check, indicating weakness, with the intention of raising after someone else bets. Check-raises are allowed in all casino poker games.
COMMUNITY CARDS: Cards that are turned face up in the middle of the table, and which belong to all players still in the hand. Community cards are used in Hold'em and Omaha.
DRAWING HAND: A hand that has the potential to become a strong hand, but which, without improvement is relatively worthless. The most common types of drawing hands are four card straights and four card flushes.
FIFTH STREET: The fifth community card in Hold'em or Omaha (in these games, FIFTH STREET is more often called the river.) Also sometimes used to refer to the fifth card received in 7-card Stud.
FLOP: In Hold'em or Omaha, the first three community cards, turned up all at once.
FLUSH: Five cards all of the same suit. For example, 2-6-8-9-Q of spades.
FLUSH DRAW: To hold four cards of the same suit, for example, 5-6-J-A of spades, and hope to catch a fifth suited card.
FOLD: To throw your cards in and drop out of a hand.
FOURTH STREET: The fourth community card in Hold'em or Omaha (in these games, FOURTH STREET is more often called the turn.) Also sometimes used to refer to the fourth card received in 7-card Stud.
FULL HOUSE: Three of one card and two of another, e.g., 10-10-10-2-2.
HAND: A player's best five cards.
HEADS-UP PLAY: When a hand has been reduced to only two players.
HIGH-LOW POKER: Any poker game where the highest and lowest hands split the pot. It is possible to have a hand that wins both. For example, A-2-3-4-5 is a straight, but is also (in most forms of HIGH-LOW POKER) considered the lowest possible hand. In some forms of HIGH-LOW, the lowest possible hand is A-2-3-4-6, and in others (although usually this is true only in low-only games), the lowest possible hand is 2-3-4-5-7, because this hand does not contain an Ace. Make sure you know what the best low hand is when you sit down to play.
HOLE CARDS: Cards that are face down and cannot be seen by the other players.
INSIDE STRAIGHT DRAW: Four cards that can make a straight by hitting one specific card, somewhere in the middle, such as 3-4-5-7, where only a "six" could give the player a straight.
KICKER: Two meanings. 1) A single card kept along with a pair, in draw, in an attempt to make two pair. For example, someone might keep 5-5-9, drawing two cards, in the hope that he might get either a third five for three of a kind, or a nine to make two pair. 2) The highest single card held by two players in Hold 'em who each hold the same pair. For
example, if the board in Hold'em is A-10-8-5-2, and Player One holds A-J as his hand, and Player Two holds A-Q, each player has a pair of Aces, but Player Two has a better kicker and would win the hand.
LIMIT POKER: The most common variety of poker, where the size of the bets are pre-determined. For example, in a $10-$20 game, the bets and raises can be only $10 in the early rounds and $20 in the
late rounds.
MISS: To hold a drawing hand but not receive the card you needed to improve. For example, someone holding four hearts and whose final card is a spade has missed his draw.
NARROWING THE FIELD: To bet or raise in the hopes that you will drive out some players whose hands are currently worse than yours, but who might improve if allowed to stay in.
NO-LIMIT POKER: Considered the most skillful and most dangerous form of poker, where any player can bet all of his chips at any time.
NUTS, THE: The best possible hand. This phrase is almost always used in the context of a particular hand (otherwise the nuts would just be a term for a royal flush). For example, in Hold'em, a player
holding 8-9 would hold the nuts if the flop came 6-7-10. At that moment, the 6-7-8-9-10 straight is the best possible hand. However, if the turn card were a Jack, and the River a Queen, a player holding A-K would then have the nuts--a 10-J-Q-K-A straight.
OMAHA: Community card poker game with significant similarities to, and equally important differences from, Texas Hold 'em. In Omaha, all players receive four cards of their own (rather than two in Hold'em), but unlike Hold'em where the players may choose to play zero, one, or two of the cards in their hand, in Omaha a player must use only two of his cards. Omaha
is frequently played in a high-low version.
OPEN-ENDED STRAIGHT DRAW: Four consecutive cards, such as 9-10-J-Q, which allows the player to complete his straight with a card on either end (in this case, an 8 or a K would complete the straight).
OVERCARDS: Cards that are higher than shown on the board. For example, in Hold'em, if the flop came 2-3-8, and your hand was 10-J, you would be said to hold two overcards.
PAIR: Two cards of the same rank, e.g., two 8s or two Aces.
PAT HAND: A hand that is complete and would not be broken up to try to improve. Straights, flushes, full houses, four of a kind, and straight flushes are all pat hands.
POSITION: Extremely important, often underrated poker concept. In most forms of poker, there is a big advantage to going last. In Hold'em, the player holding the button goes last on all rounds. By being the last to act, you have much more information available to you at the time you must decide whether to check, bet, raise, or fold.
POT: The money in the center of the table, being contested by the players.
POT-LIMIT POKER: In pot-limit, a player may bet an amount up to, but not greater than, the size of the pot at that particular moment.
RAISE: To increase the size of a bet that has been made.
RAKE: The amount of money the casino takes from the pot to make money from the poker game. In low limit games, the casino usually rakes some percentage of the pot, usually a maximum of 10% of the pot. In higher limit games, the casino makes money either by charging players an hourly fee to play, or by collecting a fee each time a player holds the button.
RIVER: In Hold'em or Omaha, the fifth and final community card. Also sometimes called FIFTH STREET.
ROCK: A player known to be very conservative, who usually bets or raises only when he has a very powerful hand.
ROYAL FLUSH: The best hand in any form of poker. Five consecutive cards from 10 to Ace, in the same suit. For example, 10-J-Q-K-A in hearts, diamonds, spades or clubs.
SLOW PLAY: To act weak when you hold an extremely powerful hand, in the hopes of luring in other players. For example, if in Hold'em your hand was the 5-6 of clubs, and the flop came 2-3-4 of clubs, you would have an unbeatable hand. But if you bet and raised aggressively right away, everyone else might fold and you would win only a small pot. By merely checking or calling, you might lure other players into thinking their hands had a better chance, thus keeping them in the game.
SMALL BLIND: A bet that must be posted by the player one seat to the left of the button. It is usually equal to one half of the smaller betting limit in a game. For example, in a $10-$20 game, the SMALL BLIND
would be $5.
STRAIGHT: Five consecutive cards. For example, 9-10-J-Q-K.
STRAIGHT FLUSH: Five consecutive cards that are also of the same suit. i.e. 8-9-10-J-Q of clubs.
SUITS: Spades, Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs. In most forms of poker, suits are unimportant, except for deciding who must begin the betting. At the end of a hand, if players hold identical cards, except that the suits are different, they are considered to hold identical hands and split the pot.
TRIPS: Three of a kind.
TURN: In Hold'em or Omaha, the fourth community card. Also sometimes called FOURTH STREET.
QUADS: Four of a kind.
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