In addition to the definitions below, this
site uses common abbreviations for certain
cards (A=Ace, K=King, Q=Queen, J=Jack, T=Ten)
and sometimes 's' for Suited or 'o' for Off
Suit/Unsuited.
Antes - An initial required bet. In Hold'em, there
are blinds instead of antes. See Blinds for
more info.
Bet - To add money to the pot and therefore
requiring everyone else in the hand to either
match your bet, raise your bet (betting again)
or fold.
Blinds - This is similar to an ante. In Hold'em,
there are usually two blind bets. The player
to the left of the dealer is called the small
blind and posts 1/2 of the initial required
bet. The player to the left of the small
blind is the big blind and posts the initial
required bet. Then after the first two cards
are dealt, betting begins to the left of
the big blind (since the big blind has already
posted a bet).
Board - The community cards that are dealt and
used by all the players. In the end, 5 cards
are dealt on the board.
Buck - See Dealer Button.
Button - See Dealer Button.
Call - To put in the required amount in order
to stay in the hand, without raising.
Check - To pass without betting when no one before
you has bet.
Dealer Button - A symbolic disc to represent who is the
dealer, since most games have a professional
dealer dealing all the hands. The location
of the Dealer Button is important to where
the blinds are and where the dealing of cards
begins for each hand.
Fifth Street - See River.
Fixed Limit - Many Texas Hold'em games are fixed limit
(vs. no limit). The names of the games are
labeled by the amounts of the limits. In
a $2/$4 game, the first two betting rounds
have $2 betting limits per bet and the latter
two rounds have a $4 betting limit per bet.
Fixed Limit is the opposite of No Limit,
where players can bet any amount they wish.
Flop - After the first two cards are dealt face
down and the initial betting round has finished,
three community cards are dealt face up in
the center of the table. These first three
cards are known as the flop.
Fold - When a player does not want to post the
required bet to stay in the hand, he/she
may return their cards to the dealer (fold)
and be out of the hand.
Fourth Street - See Turn.
Kicker - When comparing two hands of the same quality
(both 2 pairs), the next highest card in
the hand that is not part of the made hand
is used to determine the winner. This high,
unused card is known as the kicker.
No Limit - In a no limit game, there is no limit
on how much a player can bet or raise. The
minimum is usually determined by the current
blind, however a player can bet anything
up to the full amount in front of them. When
a player bets all their chips, they have
gone "all in."
Nut Hand (Nuts) - The best hand there can be. A nut flush
is an Ace high flush. A nut straight is the
highest possible straight that can be made
using the cards on the board. The nut hand
is the best possible hand that can be made
using the cards on board (can sometimes be
4 of a kind or full house if there is a pair
on board)
Post (a bet) - To put a bet on the table and
into play.
Raise - After someone has bet, the following players
may raise (bet again) on top of the initial
bet, raising the required amount for people
to stay in the hand.
Straight Flush - 5 suited cards in sequential
order (i.e. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 all clubs)
Four of a Kind - 4 cards of the same rank
(i.e. J of clubs, J of diamonds, J of spades,
J of hearts)
Full House - 1 pair and 1 three of a kind
in the same hand (i.e. J, J, J, K, K)
Flush - 5 cards of the same suit in any order
(i.e. 3, 7, 9, J, Q all spades)
Straight - 5 cards in sequential order (i.e.
7, 8, 9, T, J)
Three of a Kind - 3 cards of the same rank
(i.e. 7, 7, 7, any other 2 cards)
Two Pair - 2 different pairs in the same
hand (i.e. 4, 4, 9, 9, any other card)
Pair - 2 cards of the same rank (i.e. 5,
5, any other 3 cards)
High Card - when none of the above hands
can be made, the highest card in
the hand
determines the winner.
Ring Games - Traditional cash games with fixed antes/blinds.
The opposite of a Tournament, where there
is a single buy-in and players compete for
a top prize.
River - The final community card that is dealt.
This fifth card ends the dealing of the cards
and begins the final round of betting. Also
referred to as ‘fifth street.’
Showdown - After all the cards are dealt and the
betting has completed, the players show their
cards and the winner is decided.
Slowplay - To purposely act as if you have a lesser
hand on earlier rounds to deceive the other
players in preparation for playing more aggressively
on later betting rounds
Street - Commonly referred to as “fourth street”
or “fifth street”, the street is the card
number that is being played. Fifth street,
for example, is when the 5th card (or River
Card) is played.
Suited - Cards of the same suit (i.e. all hearts)
Trips - Same as Three of a kind (some people consider
Trips only if you have a pair in your hand
and one on the board)
Turn - The fourth community card that is dealt.
This is the first round of betting with the
higher limit, in a fixed limit game. Also
referred to as ‘fourth street.’
Unsuited - Cards of different suits (i.e. one heart
and one club)
For an excellent resource on poker lingo
visit Michael Wiesenberg's Poker Dictionary
