Poker Lingo
The following is a collection of poker lingo used in live games and over the internet. This is continuously added to as new terms are found.
A
Action - the ability to act, or the abundance of bets and raises
All-In - putting all your remaining chips into the pot while betting or calling, also known as a push
Ante - the small bet contributed by every player at the beginning of a hand, usually only in late tournament game
B
Backdoor - when catching both the flop and river cards gives you a drawing hand
Bad Beat - a loss despite having strong odds to win
Belly-Buster - an inside straight draw or gut shot
Big "Chick" - Ace and Queen in hand
Big Slick - Ace and King in hand
Blinds - the obligated bet by the two players (small blind and big blind) to the left of the dealer button
Board - the community cards dealt to the table for use by everyone
Button - the "dealer button", passed to the left after every hand, that serves as a marker for the player who will act last in the hand, the best position on the table
C
Calling Station - a weak-passive player who calls much more often than he raises or folds, very profitable player to play against
Check - to decline betting any number of chips
Check-Raise - checking in a hand with the intention of raising any bets in order to make the pot larger
Cold Call - to call any amount of bets outright
Crack - to beat a hand that is generally better than the one you were dealt
D
Dominated - two hands that have the same high card but different kickers, the higher kicker is said to dominate the lower kicker
Draw Dead - trying to make a hand that will not win at showdown anyway
E
F
Family Pot - a pot in which all or most players call to see the flop
Fifth Street - also known as the "river", the fifth and final card dealt to the table (after the turn)
Flop - the first three community cards dealt to the table after the initial betting stage
Flush Draw - when four of the five cards needed to make a flush are held
Fourth Street - also known as the "turn", the fourth card dealt to the table (after the flop)
G
Gut Shot - when four of the five cards needed to make a straight are held but they are not in sequential order (ie. 3467), also known as "belly-buster straight draw" and "inside straight-draw"
H
Heads Up - when the pot or set of winnings contested between only two players
I
Implied Odds - the odds or percentage of winning compared to the odds or percentage of what the probable size of the pot will become
Inside Straight Draw - better known as the gut shot, when four of the five cards needed to make a straight are held but they are not in sequential order (ie. 3467)
J
K
Kicker - the tie-breaking card, keeping in mind that only the best five cards out of the seven you can use are utilized at showdown
L
Limp - the act of calling the minimum bet (the big blind) in order to play your hand
M
Maniac - a player who plays ultra-aggressively, making big bets on bad cards, winning by bluffing and intimidation, difficult to play against but very profitable in the long run
Muck - folding a hand without showing the cards
N
Nuts - the best possible hand at any given time
O
Outs - the number of cards left in the deck that could improve your hand in order to win
P
Pocket Rockets - pair of aces dealt preflop, also known as "American Airlines"
Pot Odds - the odds or percentage of winning compared to the ratio or percentage created by bet you must call and the current pot size
Push - the act of reraising strongly or moving all-in
Q
Quads - four of a kind
R
Rainbow - a flop containing three different suits, resulting in lowest possible odds for a flush at showdown
Rake - the chips taken by the house from every pot, usually determined by a set amount or ratio of the pot
Represent - to play as if you are holding a particular hand
River - the fifth and final community card dealt (after the turn), also known as "fifth street"
S
Semi-Bluff - betting when the hand has not quite hit its desired strength in hopes to bluff the opponent out of the hand and/or increase the pot size if the hand does become exceptionally strong
Set - three of a kind
Short-Handed - a table with less than 7 opponents
Short Stack - a number of chips that is relatively small compared to other player's or to the blinds (generally less than 10x the big blind)
Slow-play - intentionally passively playing an extremely strong hand in order to trap opponents into betting and increasing the pot size
SnG - Sit and Go, a tournament consisting of a small number of players, generally between one and four tables worth
Stone Cold Bluff - betting with the hopes of bluffing the opponent even though there is no possibility of winning the hand
STT - single table tournament
Suited Connectors - any two sequential cards of the same suit
T
Tell - a clue or hint that a player unknowingly gives about the strength of his hand
Tilt - an angry, upset, or emotionally unstable opponent resulting in an erratic manner of play
Trips - three of a kind
Turn - the fourth card dealt to the table (after the river), also known as "fourth street"
U
V
Variance - the measure of up and down swings a bankroll goes through