Poker Glossary
Aces Up: A pair of aces and another pair of any suit in a had.
Ante: Also known as
Sweetening the Pot, where chips are put into the pot before the deal.
Back in: Also known as
check-raise or sandbagging, (when check-and-raise is permitted) a player will check their hand and then raise it after another player has opened the betting.
Back to Back: Also known as
Wired, where a player makes a pair in the first two cards they are dealt.
Bad beat: When you have a big hand beaten by another player who got their longshot draw.
Bet: When there isn't a bet on the table, the player chooses to place a bet.
Betting the Pot: Making a bet equal to that of the pot.
Bicycle: Also known as
wheel, the lowest possible hand in lowball. In Ace to five or deuce to seven.
Big Blind: The biggest and last blind in a game where there are multiple blinds. (ex Texas Hold'em)
Blind: A player puts in a forced bet that opens a pot before the cards are dealt.
Bluff: When you have a weak hand, but make a bet anyways trying to bluff the other players into folding their hands.
Board: The community cards, or the up-cards are dealt face up. (ex in Texas Hold'em, Seven-Stud or Omaha)
Bonus: Also known as
royalties, when you have a strong hand and receive a bonus payment.
Bring it On: The first optional bet.
Burn and Turn: Usually said by the last player to act on his hand (this also indicates that the player checks.) To burn or bury the top card of the deck before giving the active players their cards.
Bust: When your hand gives you no chance at winning the pot.
Button: The button is passed around clockwise, when there is a house dealer. The button represents that the player with the button in front of them is the theoretical dealer and as a reasult will bet and act last in each round.
Buy-In: To secure a seat in a game of poker, sometimes a player with have to place a minimal amount of money for the buy-in.
Call: When placing a bet that is the equivalent to that as a previous bet.
Calling Station: A player that almost always calls the bet no matter what hand they have, therefore this player is nearly impossible to bluff.
Case Card: The last card of a particular rank, ex if the other 3 jacks are in the discards, and you get the last jack.
Catch Perfect: Where there are only one or two cards in the deck that can be dealt to you so that you will win the pot.
Chase: Playing against another hand that you know is higher than yours, but you are still trying to beat it.
Check: When there isn't a bet placed on the table a player may essentially bet zero and pass the action on to the next player.
Check Blind: Without even looking at your hand and you check.
Complete Hand: When your hand consits of a straight, flush or full house.
Courtesy Bet: You place a bet (usually a bluff) becuase you are fairly certain your opponent will call or raise.
Crack the Nut: A professional gambler wins their minimal living expenses.
Defensive Bet: You beleive if you don't make a bet your opponent will make a higher bet in hope you will fold, therefore you make a bet in hopes the opponent will check it.
Double Pot: Raising a bet right after your opponent raised the bet.
Double Through: To double your chips on a table by winning the pot.
Down the River: In Seven Card Stud, the last card to be dealt face down.
Driver's Seat: To appear to have the best hand a t a certain point in the game.
Equalized: When all of the players staying in the game for that deal have made bets equal to the other player's bets.
False Cut: The player appears to have cut the deck when really the deck is in it's original state prior to the 'cut'.
False Shuffle: It appears the deck is being shuffled, but by a skillful card manipulator the deck was not shuffled.
Family Pot: Where most of the players at the table have invested into the pot.
Favorite: The player with the better chances of winning the hand.
Fifth Street: The fifth card to be dealt in stud poker, or the last community card to be dealt in Hold'em poker.
Fill: To luck and draw the card that will complete the straight, flush or to make the hand a full house from a two pair.
Five of a Kind: A poker hand that can only happen when there are wild cards in the deck.
Flop: The first three community cards to be turned in Hold'em.
Flush: All 5 cards are of the same suit, but not in numerical sequence.
Fold: Also known as
Drop, to discard your hand and not place a bet leaving you out of the game until the next hand is dealt.
Four of a Kind: To have four cards of the same rank.
Full House: A poker hand that has a 3 of a kind and a pair of cards.
Hand: Usually the poker hand consists of 5 cards.
No Pair: A poker hand that does not have any value, if all of the other poker players were to have this hand the winner would be decided byt a high card
One Pair: A poker hand that has one pair of cards and the rest of the cards would be of essentially no value.
Showdown: The remaining players of that round place their hands face up on the table to determine the winner of that hand and the pot.
Raise: When there is already a bet on the table the player may raise that bet.
Royal Flush: Also known as
Royal Straight Flush, a poker hand that has the 5 cards of the same suit starting with an Ace down to the 10. With odds of being dealt this 1 in 650,000!
Straight: A poker hand that has 5 cards in sequence, but they are not of the same suit. For example this could be 4 of clubs, 5 of hearts, 6 of hearts, 7 of diamonds, and the 8 of clubs.
Straight Flush: A poke hand that has 5 cards in numerical sequence and in the same suite.
Three of a Kind: A poker hand that has 3 cards that are of the same value. For example this could be three 4's.
Two Pairs: A poker hand that has one pair of cards and then another pair of cards of a different value. For example the first pair could be two 5's, and the second pair could be two Aces.
