Poker Glossary
All-in – to have bet all one’s chips
Aces up – to have 2 pair, one which is Aces
Action – the total amount bet to by players
Add on – some tournaments there is an option to purchase addition chips before a certain time period is over.
Advertising – the act of playing and showing hands that you would not normally just to get action later on in the game.
Ante – a forced bet that must be paid by everyone
Baby full – full house where the three of a kind is made using a lower rank community card
Baby pair – 6′s or lower
Bad Beat – when a good hand is beat by a hand that had very small odds of winning.
Bankroll – amount of money a person has to gamble with
Big Blind – the amount of money the person 2 to the left of the deal is forced to put in.
Big Slick – slang for the starting hand A K in Texas Holdem
Blank – a card that comes on turn or river that is unlikely to change anyone’s hand
Bluff – to bet when you do not believe you have the best hand.
Blind – in holdem games the players one and two seats to the left of the dealer are forced to put in bets to start the action.
Blind defender – a person that will call raises with bad hand because they do not like people taking the money they are force to put in as the blinds.
Blind Level – is the amount the blinds are and how long before they will go up again. In tournaments the blinds go up every x period of time to force the action and ensure the tournament will be over at some point.
Box – the area were the dealer sits at the table.
Broadway Straight – an ace high straight of mixed suits
Back Door Flush – Flopping 3 cards to a flush and hitting two more on the turn and river to complete it.
Back Door Straight – Flopping 3 cards to a straight and hitting two more on the turn and river to complete it.
Capped – Reached the max number of raises that are allowed per round of betting, mostly for limit games but sometimes found in NL games as well. Most of the time 3-4 raises are allowed in a limit game unless the hand is heads up were most casino’s then allow unlimited raises.
Cooler – a great hand that is beat and cost you lots of chips. Pulled from the old casino term of hiring unlucky people “The Cooler” to sit down with people winning lots of money and stop their run.
Collusion – any attempt of players to work together during a hand to gain an advantage or cheat other players. Often done through signaling each other what they have or want them to do by how they place chips on their cards.
Coming over the top – to either raise or re-raise a player.
Deal – in a tournament the final players agree to split up the money rather than playing down to the end.
Drawing Dead – When there is no card that can come that allows them to win the hand.
Double Up – when you double your chips by being all in against another player and win the hand
Expected Value ( EV ) – % chance of winning * amount in pot – % chance of losing * investment
Fish – Weak player that tends to lose against stronger players, often made very welcome at the table.
Flop – the three community card that are dealt face up.
Fold – make one’s cards inactive by giving them to the dealer or putting them directly in the muck.
Freeroll – when players do not pay an entry fee to play a tournament but there is still a prize pool. Also when you are tied for the pot but you have a re-draw and there are cards that can give you the whole pot.
Floating – someone calling a bet on one street with no made hand but just a plan to bet and steal the pot on a later street.
Felted – Loose all the chips in front of you, comes from the saying “chip stack is down to the felt”
Fold Equity – % change they will fold given X bet amount vs how much you could win.
Gutshot / Belly Buster straight Draw – when there is only one rank of card that will complete your straight ie you have 3 4 6 7 and need only a 5 to win
Laydown – the act of folding a good hand give a lot of betting pressure from another player.
Leak – a weakness in a player game that causes them to loose their bankroll over time.
Limped In – just calling the BB amount, not raising or calling a raise.
Loose / Aggressive ( LAG ) - Player enters a lot of hands, bets a lot during it.
Loose / Passive – Player enters a lot of hands and does a lot of calling during it.
Muck – to fold directly to the discarded cards instead of giving them to the dealer.
Nuts – having the best possible hand on the board at the given time.
No Limit ( NL ) – you can bet any amount of chips at any time during the hand.
Outkicked – at least one card in your hand plays and is higher than your opponents.
Position – a persons order to act compared to the dealer button.
Relative Position – a persons order to act compared to the last person that raised.
Prop Bet – a wager made on a particular event occurring during a game that is not related to poker skills.
Pot Odds – The amount of money in the pot compared to the cost of calling a bet. Pot / Bet = Pot odds
ROI – Return on Investment.
River – the fifth and last community card that is turned up.
Spread Limit – There is an max amount that can be bet or raised each time.
Set – when a players hole cards are a pair and the third of that rank is on the board.
Table Stakes – Can only bet the amount of money you have currently sitting on the table.
Tight / Aggressive ( TAG ) - Player does not enter very many hands, bets a lot during it.
Tight / Passive – Player does not enter very many hands and does a lot of calling during it.
Tilt – when a player is upset and not playing their best game.
Tell – an inadvertent mannerism that reveals information about the strength of a player’s hand
Turn – the fourth community card that is turned up.
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