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| Poker Dictionary |
| There are a lot of Poker specific terms that
you need to know and learn. Some are more useful than others;
however by learning them will you enhance your experience and enjoy
the game much more. Action (1) Opportunity to act. If a poker player appears not to realize it's his turn, the dealer will say "Pokernick It’s your turn to act! Hurry up!" (2) Bets and raises. "If a third heart hits the board and there's a lot of action, you have to assume that someone has made the flush." Ante This is the first bet posted by each player before any cards are dealt. Antes are set by Betsson Poker and vary with the game stakes. Note that this is only applicable on 7 Card Stud. Before a game of Seven Card Stud starts, all players ante a nominal amount, for example $1 in a $10-$20 game. Blinds is a special form of ante and applies to Texas Hold’em, see ‘Blind’ below. Alias This is the name that other Players will know you by. It is also known as the Nick. All-in This is when the Player does not have enough chips to cover the full bet amount and places the remaining amount in the pot. The player then contends for the pot in proportion to what he has contributed. The game play that continues among the other players is put into a side pot. The All-in player has no share in the side pot. Example: "Poor Steve - he made full house against the flush, but he was all-in on the second bet." (this means that Steve only wins the pot at the stage when he went All-in) All-in is also applicable when you are disconnected. You participate in the pot at the stage when you where disconnected. All-in Protection All in protection is used for ring games in the event that someone is disconnected from the table. Basically what happens is that when the player is disconnected a side pot is created (the same as if they had gone all-in) with the money that player has invested in the hand. This means that the player still has the opportunity to win if in fact they have the best hand at the showdown. Also note that there is a limit of 3 all-in protections per 24-hour period. After that your hand will no longer be protected. That limit is used in order to stop people from abusing the all-in protection system, by deliberately going all-in. You will see the number of all-ins you have left for the day when you arrive at a table. It says, for example, “Remaining all-ins: 2” in the text window. These are not available for No limit or Pot Limit games. Bet The act of placing a wager in turn into the pot on any betting round, or the chips put into the pot. Bet limits Bet limits establish the maximum and minimum amounts of chips that players can bet. E.g. in a $10/20 game, the minimum bet limit is $10 and the maximum bet limit is $20. Big Blind The forced bet in second position after the dealer before any cards is dealt. The big blind equals the amount of the minimum bet limit, or if no limit is set is according to the blind rules of that table. You can usually see the blind level next to each table in the Lobby. Please compare with the expression ‘Small blind’! Bluff A bet or raise with a hand that is unlikely to beat the other players. Board All the community cards in a Hold’em game - the flop, turn, and river cards together. Example: "There wasn't a single heart on the board.". Button The disk on the table that indicates who the (nominal) dealer is. Also used to refer to the player on the button. Example: "Oh, the button raised." In Betsson Poker, the disc is marked with a D for dealer. Cap To put in the last raise permitted on a betting round. In structured limit games, the only valid bet/raise is the current limit, for example $5 on the first two rounds in a $5-$10 Hold'em game. There may be a maximum of 4 bet/raises in a round of betting. This includes a bet, raise, re-raise and a cap. Please see our rules for all betting structure we offer. Centre Pot The first pot created during a poker hand. This is as opposed to one or more "side" pots that are created if one or more players go All-in. Also recognised as "main pot". Check To not bet, with the option to call or raise later in the betting round. Equivalent to betting zero dollars. Check Raise To check and then raise when a player behind you bets. Occasionally you will hear people say this is not fair nor ethical poker. Almost all casinos permit check-raising as we do at Betsson Poker, and it is an important poker tactic. It is particularly useful in low-limit Hold’em where you need extra strength to narrow the field when you have the best hand. Community cards The five cards that are turned up on the board (table). From which you combine the strongest five card poker hand with your two pocket cards. Complete Hand A hand that is defined by all five cards - a straight, flush, full house, four of a kind, or straight flush. Connector A Hold’em starting hand in which the two cards are one apart in rank. Examples: King and Queen of spades, 7 and 6 in any colour. Dominated Hand A hand that will almost always lose to a better hand that people usually play. For instance, K3 is "dominated" by KQ. With the exception of strange flops (e.g. 3-3-x, K-3-x), it will always lose to KQ. Equity Your "rightful" share of a pot. If the pot contains $80, and you have a 50% chance of winning it, you have $40 equity in the pot. This term is somewhat fanciful since you will either win $80 or $0, but it gives you an idea of how much you can "expect" to win. Expectation (1) A term referring to the amount you expect to gain on average if you make a certain play. For instance, suppose you put $10 into a $50 pot to draw at a hand that you will make 25% of the time, and it will win every time you make it. Three out of four times, you do not make your draw, and lose $10 each time for a total of $30. The fourth time, you will make your draw, winning $50. Your total gain over those four average hands is $50-$30 = $20, an average of $5 per hand. Thus calling the $10 has a positive expectation of $5. (2) The amount you expect to make at the poker table in a specific time period. Perhaps in 100 hours play, you have won $527. Then your expectation is $5.27/hr. Of course, you won't make that exact amount each hour (and some hours you will lose), but it's one measure of your anticipated earnings. Flop The first three community cards, put out face up, all together. Gutshot Straight A straight filled "inside". If you have 9s-8s, the flop comes 7c-5h-2d, and the turn is the 6c, you've made your gutshot straight. Heads Up A pot that is being contested by only two players - "It was heads up by the turn.". Hit As in "the flop hit me." It means the flop contained cards that help your hand. If you have AK, and the flop comes K-7-2, it hit you. House The Pokerroom is the establishment running the game. You pay the rake to the house, but the house doesn’t participate in the game as such. Kicker An unpaired card used to determine the better of two near-equivalent hands. For instance, suppose you have Ace and King (AK) and your opponent has Ace and Queen (AQ). If the flop has an ace in it, you both have a pair of aces, but you have a king kicker. Kickers can be vitally important in Hold’em. Lobby In most pokerrooms it’s the area where you can choose your table and type of game. The lobby is loaded in a separate web browser window that pops up when a ‘Play now’-link is clicked. Muck The expression used when you fold your hand against a winning hand or when you win a pot without somebody calling you. You don’t have to show your winning hand unless somebody calls you. Nick This is the name that other Players will know you by. It is also known as the Alias. No-Limit A version of poker in which a player may bet any amount of chips (up to the number he currently has available at the table) whenever it is his turn to act. It is a very different game than limit poker. Nuts The best possible hand given the board. If the board is Ks-Jd-Ts-4s-2h, then As-Xs is the nuts. You will occasionally hear the term applied to the best possible hand of a certain category, even though it isn't the overall nuts. For the above example, somebody with Ah-Qc in the above hand might say they had the "nut straight". Out A card that will make your hand win. Normally heard in the plural. Example: "Any spade will make my flush, so I have nine outs.". Over card A card higher than any card on the board. For instance, if you have AQ and the flop comes J-7-3, you don't have a pair, but you have two over cards. Over pair A pocket pair higher than any card on the flop. If you have QQ and the flop comes J-8-3, you have an over pair. Play the Board To show down a hand in Hold’em when your cards don't make a hand any better than is shown on the board. For instance, if you have 22, and the board is 4-4-9-9-A (no flush possible), then you must "play the board" - the best possible hand you can make doesn't use any of your cards. Note that if you play the board, the best you can do is to split the pot with all remaining players. Pocket or pocket cards Your unique cards that only you can see. For instance, "He had pocket sixes" (a pair of sixes), or "I had ace-king in the pocket." Also known as ‘Hole Cards’. Post To put in a blind bet, generally required when you first sit down in an ongoing game. When a player first sits in at an active Texas Hold'em table he/she is also required to post the equivalent of the big blind. If you ‘sit-out’ and the dealer button passes your chair, you are also required to post. This is regarded as a penalty or paying to return to the table. Pot Limit A version of poker in which a player may bet up to the amount of money in the pot whenever it is his turn to act. Like no-limit, this is a very different game from limit poker. Quads Four of a kind. Rake An amount of money taken out of every pot by the house - this is Betsson Poker’s income. See the rake structure in the Poker School. Rank The numerical value of a card (as opposed to its suit). Example: "jack”,” seven". River The fifth and final community card, put out face up, by itself. Also known as "Fifth Street". Metaphors involving the river are some of poker's most treasured clichés e.g. "He drowned in the river". Scare Cards or combination of cards that might give other players advantage of your pocket cards. E.g. Three consecutive or close cards might very well give someone a straight draw. Second Pair A pair with the second highest card on the flop. If you have As-Ts, and the flop comes Kd-Th-6c, you have flopped second pair. Set Three of a kind when you have two of the rank in your hand, and there is one on the board. Short Stack A number of chips that is not very many compared to the other players at the table. If you have $10 in front of you, and everybody else at the table has over $100, you are playing on a short stack. Showdown The point at which all players remaining in the hand turn their cards over and determine who has the best hand - i.e. after the fourth round of betting is completed. Of course, if a final bet or raise is not called, there is no showdown. Side Pot A pot created in which a player has no interest because he has run out of chips. Example: Adam bets $6, Brian calls the $6, and Caroline calls, but she has only $2 left. An $8 side pot is created that either Adam or Brian can win, but not Caroline. Furthermore, any more bets that Adam and Brian make go into that side pot. Caroline, however, can still win all the money in the original or "centre" pot. Sit-out A player who chooses to remain at the table, but sitting out of the game. When the player sits in again is he/she required to post if the dealer button has passed his/hers seat. Small blind This is the first bet posted by the player to the Dealers left. It is a forced or mandatory bet in Texas Hold’em. The small blind is half of the Big blind and is equal to half of the minimum bet limit. Split Pot A pot which is shared by two or more players because they have equivalent hands. Split Two Pair A two pair hand in which one of each of your cards' ranks appears on the board as well. Example: you have T9, the flop is T-9-5, you have a split two pair. This is in comparison to two pair where there is a pair on the board. Example: you have T9, the flop is 9-5-5. Stack Chips in front of a player. –“Your stack is 20,000”! Suited cards Cards that are suited in ranking, colour or a combination of both. Pocketcards such as AsKs, 8c9d, Dh6h. the first may give you flush or straight, second works in a straight and the third example works in a flush. Table Stakes A rule meaning that a player may not transfer more money to the table during a hand. He may only invest the amount of money available in his table balance into the current pot. If he runs out of chips during the hand, a side pot is created in which he has no interest. All casino poker is played table stakes. The definition sometimes also includes the rule that a player may not remove chips from the table during a game. While this rule might not be referred to as "table stakes", it is enforced almost universally in public poker games. Top Pair A pair with the highest card on the flop. If you have As-Qs, and the flop comes Qd-Th-6c, you have flopped top pair. Trips Three of a kind. Turn The fourth community card. Put out face up, by itself. Also known as "Fourth Street.". Under the gun The position of the player who acts first on a betting round. For instance, if you are one to the left of the big blind, you are under the gun before the flop. Value As in "bet for value." This means that you would actually like your opponents to call your bet (as opposed to a bluff). Generally it's because you have the best hand. Wager (1) To bet or raise the pot. (2) The chips used for betting or rising. |