To win an entire pot as opposed to
"splitting" the pot, especially in
High-Low split games.
Poker Glossary
Action
Opportunity to act by making a
check, call, bet, raise or fold. It
is also indicative of a very active
game (i.e. lots of bets and raises)
Active player
Any player still remaining in a
particular hand
Ante
Required money invested in the pot
before any cards are dealt. The ante
is not to be considered part of the
bet
All-in
When a player bets all his/her
remaining chips on a single hand
American Airlines
Pocket aces
B&M
Shortened term for a brick and
mortar cardroom as opposed to an
online cardroom
Backdoor
Catching two cards in a row, on the
turn and the river, to complete a
hand
Bad Beat
An unlucky turn of events that
causes a player to lose a usually
strong hand
Bet
To place money/chips into the pot
Bet Blind
To place a bet without looking at
one's cards
Big Slick
Hole cards comprised of an Ace and a
King
Blind
A required bet made before any cards
are dealt. There are two types of
blinds - a big blind and a small
blind with the small blind typically
being half the size of the big blind
Bluff
To bet or raise so to make other
players believe that one has a
better hand than he/she holds in
order to win the pot
Boat
Poker hand that contains a full
house. Also referred to as a full
boat
Broadway
Poker hand that contains an ace high
straight
Bubble
The last non-paying spot in a poker
tournament
Burn
To discard the top card from the
deck, face down. This is done
between betting rounds before the
next community card
Button
A white disk also known as the
dealer button serves to recognize
which player sitting at the table is
the dealer for that particular hand.
After each hand has completed, as
with standard poker rules, the
button moves clockwise to the next
active player. This is done, because
there is an advantage to having to
act last and so each player gets his
fair share of early, late and middle
positions
Buy-in
The amount of money it costs to
enter a poker tournament
Call
To place money/chips equal to
another player's bet amount
Calling Station
A player who usually calls other
player's bets instead of betting or
raising
Canine
Hole cards comprised of a King and a
Nine
Check
When a player's action is not to bet
when there have been no other bets
made in a particular round
Check-Raise
When a player initially checks and
then raises in the same betting
round
Community Card
A face up card that may be used by
all players at a table
Connector
A starting poker hand in which your
two hole cards are only one rank
apart
Cowboys
A pair of kings
Crabs
A pair of threes
Dead Man's Hand
Poker hand that contains two pair;
Black Aces and Black Eights. This
was the winning hand that Wild Bill
Hickok was shot with
Deal
To give players and the board cards
throughout a poker game
Dealer
The nominal player, who distributes
the cards during a hand of poker.
Each player takes a turn dealing and
is designated as such by a dealer
button. Also called a button
Donkey
A disparaging insult that poker
players use against other players.
This is not allowed in the chat area
Double Up
To increase your chip stack by 100%
Down Cards
A player's cards that are dealt face
down which only he can see. Also
called Hole cards
Draw
A situation in which a player needs
one card to complete a poker hand
Drawing Dead
A situation in which a player cannot
statistically beat another player's
cards regardless of what cards come
up
Ducks
A pair of deuces
Early Position
One of the three positions to the
immediate left of the big blind
Even Money Pot
A situation in which a player's
chances of winning a pot are about
50%
Family Pot
A hand in which all the players call
prior to the flop
Fifth Street
The fifth face up card dealt. Also
known as the river
Flop
The first three community cards
dealt face up
Flush
Poker hand that contains five cards
of the same suit
Fold
Concede the pot by not calling a
previous bet. A player who folds is
no longer active
Forced Bet
A mandatory bet that starts the
action on the first round of a poker
hand
Four-of-a-Kind
Poker hand that contains four cards
of equal rank
Fourth Street
The fourth face up card dealt. Also
known as the turn
Free Roll
A tournament that requires no entry
fee
Gut-shot Straight
Poker hand in which you need one
card to complete a straight draw.
Also called Inside straight
Hand
A player's best five cards
Heads-up
A situation in which poker is played
one on one
Hi-Lo
A poker game in which the pot is
awarded to both the highest and
lowest hand
Hole Cards
A player's cards that are dealt face
down which only he can see. Also
called Down cards
Implied Odds
The odds that a player factors into
his calculation of pot odds to
account for being called if you
complete your hand
Inside Straight
Poker hand in which you need one
card to complete a straight draw.
Also called a gutshot straight
Kicker
The highest unpaired card in a
player's hand
King Crab
Poker hand containing a king and a
three
Ladies
A pair of queens
Lay Down
To fold a hand
Limp In
To only call the big blind before
the flop
Limit Poker
Variation of poker in which the bet
amounts are preset
Main Pot
The initial pot where betting
started prior to a player(s) going
all-in
Maniac
A loose, aggressive player who likes
to raise a lot of pots
Marginal play hand
A hand that is statistically weak
and probably should not be played
according to the odds
Missed Blind
A mandatory bet that is not posted
Muck
To discard or throw away your cards
No Limit Poker
Variation of poker in which there
are no preset betting amounts
Nuts
The best possible poker hand given
the face up cards
Off Suit
A term used to describe a hand with
cards that are of different suits
Open-ended Straight
Poker hand in which two different
cards can be used to complete a
straight draw. The two cards being
on either end of the four connected
cards
Open Seat
A seat at a game that is currently
available for any player to sit in
Out(s)
A number of cards that are needed to
complete a winning hand
Overcard
A card that is higher than any card
on the board
Overpair
A pair of pocket cards which are
higher than any community cards on
the board
Pocket Pair
A pair of pocket cards
Post
To place money/chips in the pot
Pot
The money/chips where all bets go
for players to win
Pot Limit Poker
Variation of poker in which the
maximum bat that a player can make
is the amount of the pot at the time
of the bet
Pot Odds
A calculation that is used to decide
if it is worth calling a bet to
remain in a hand. Pot odds are
calculated by dividing the size of
the pot by the amount of money it
costs to call a bet.
Qualify Low
Make a hand that is eligible to win
half the pot in a high-low split
game
Quads
Poker hand that contains four cards
of equal rank
Rabbit Hunting
Looking for the cards that would
have come up after all players have
folded their hands. This is
considered bad etiquette.
Raise
To increase the previous bet
Rake
Money/chips taken from the pot to
compensate the site for hosting the
game
Rathole
When a player is up in a particular
poker session and then takes
money/chips from the table and
returns to play with a smaller
bankroll
Railbird
Someone who looks on or watches a
poker game after he has busted out
or can't afford the stakes. It is
bad etiquette to use the chat
function in a game if you are a
railbird
Read
To make your best guess at what your
opponent's hand is
Represent
To pretend and play as if you have a
strong hand when certain cards are
shown on the board
Reraise
To raise against an existing raise
Ring Game
A real money game of poker at a
regular table as opposed to a
tournament game that is player with
a preset number of chips
River
The fifth face up card dealt. Also
known as fifth street
Runner
A poker hand that is made only by
hitting the correct cards on the
turn and the river
Satellites
Ten handed qualifying mini
tournaments in which players put up
a much smaller amount than the
buy-in to a regular tournament in
hopes of winning a seat to the much
larger tournament
Seat position
The position of a player in relation
to the dealer's button
Set
Poker hand that contains three cards
of equal rank. Also call trips
Show
To expose one's cards
Shuffle
Mixing cards prior to the deal
Short Stack
A relatively small amount of chips
compared with the other players at
the table
Showdown
The point in a particular hand when
all players remaining in the hand
turn their cards over to determine
the best five card hand
Slowplay
Intentionally underbetting a strong
hand in order to lure other players
into calling
Side Pot
The pot(s) from all side bets. Any
player(s) All-in can not win any
side pots that they did not invest
in.
Sitting Out
A player leaving the table or being
timed out is "Sitting Out". In a
live game, if a player sits out,
there is a time limit for a player
to remain out at which time he will
be removed from the game
Smooth-Calling
Intentionally calling other players
bets with a strong hand in order to
lure other players into the pot
Snowmen
A pair of eights
Split Pot
A pot which is shared and won by two
or more players
Suck Out
A winning hand that is made by a
player who catches a lucky card on
the river
Suited Connectors
A starting poker hand in which your
two hole cards are only one rank
apart and are of the same suit
Tell
A hint or giveaway that a player
unknowingly gives as to the strength
of his hand
Tilt
Term for a player that is playing
wildly and recklessly by playing far
too many hands because they have
become emotionally unbalanced
Top Pair
Poker hand in which you combine one
of your hole cards with the highest
exposed card on the flop
Under the Gun
The position to the immediate left
of the big blind
Value Bet
A bet that you would like an
opponent to call instead of fold
because you believe the chances are
better that you will win rather than
lose the hand
Variance
The positive or negative swings in
ones bankroll. This is not
necessarily a measure of a player's
skill level but it is a good
indicator of a player's style
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