Beginner - Glossary

Over a thousand words and phrases used in poker literature and heard in poker games are defined below. While this is the most comprehensive glossary ever compiled, it provides something much more than a long list of colorful jargon: Reading through the glossary provides unique insights into poker, available nowhere else.

- A -

Aces Up -- A pair of aces with one other pair.

Action -- The betting.

Action Spot -- The table area where the betting is occurring.

Active Player -- A player competing for a pot.

Add-them-up Lowball -- Draw poker where the hand with the lowest point total wins.

Advanced-Concept Player -- A player whose style is based on the Advanced Concepts of Poker. (A-C Player).

Advanced Concepts of Poker -- The concepts used by the good poker player to win maximum money from opponents.

Advertise -- To have a bluff called in order to encourage opponents to call later.

A-game -- The highest stake game in the house.

Age -- First position to the left of the dealer (A, Able, or Edge).

Agent -- A confederate or collusion partner in cheating.

Alien Card -- A card not belonging to the deck in play.

Alive Card -- See Live Card.

All Blue, or All Pink -- A flush.

All-In -- The betting by a player of all his money on the table.

All the Way -- Cincinnati with a progressive bet.

Alternate Straight -- A sequence of every other card, such as two, four, six, eight, ten (Dutch Straight, Skipper, Skip Straight).

Ambique -- A French card game that influenced the draw variation of poker.

American Brag -- A game where the raiser shows the first caller his hand and the worst hand folds.

Anaconda -- A seven-card game with bets made on five rolled-up cards.

Announce -- To declare high, low, or the moon in high-low poker.

Announced Bet -- A verbal bet made by a player before putting his money in the pot.

Ante -- Money put in the pot before dealing.

A Priori Odds -- The probability that an event will occur.

Arkansas Flush -- A four flush.

Around the Comer Straight -- A sequence running from the highest to the lowest values, such as queen, king, ace, two, three.

Âs Nas -- A Persian card game from which poker was directly derived.

Assigned Bettor -- The player who bets first.

Australian Poker -- Draw poker with a blind opening.

Automatic Bluff -- A lowball situation that almost always requires a bluff.

- B -

Back-in -- To win by default or unexpectedly.

Backer -- A nonplayer who finances an active player.

Backraise -- A reraise. To make a minimum raise to avoid a larger raise.

Back-to-back -- A pair on the first two cards dealt in stud (Backed Up).

Bait -- A small bet that encourages a raise.

Bank -- Where the money from purchased chips is kept.

Banker -- The person responsible for selling and cashing chips.

Bank Night -- High-low five-card stud with two twists.

Barn -- A full house.

Barracuda -- A tough player.

Baseball -- A stud game involving nines and threes as wild cards.

Beans -- Chips.

Bear -- A tight player.

Beat the Board (Table) -- To have a hand better than all others showing.

Beat Your Neighbor -- A five-card game that requires each player in turn to expose his cards until his hand beats the board.

Bedsprings -- Similar to Cincinnati except ten cards are dealt face-up for use in everyone's hand.

Belly-Buster Straight -- An inside straight.

Belly Hit -- When a draw fills an inside straight (Gut Shot).

Belly Strippers -- Cards with slightly trimmed edges that taper from a wider center to the ends (Humps).

Best Flush -- A game in which only flushes win the pot.

Bet Into -- To bet before another player who apparently has a better hand.

Bet or Get -- A rule that one must either bet or fold with no checking allowed (Bet or Drop, Passout).

Bet the Limit -- To bet the maximum amount allowed.

Bet the Pot -- To bet an amount equal to the pot.

Bet the Raise -- The maximum bet being twice that of the previous bet or raise.

Betting Interval -- The period from the first bet to the last call in any given round.

Betting Pace -- The degree, extent, and aggressiveness of bets and raises.

Betting Stakes -- The dollar limits of all bets and raises permitted.

Betting Ratios -- The differences in maximum bets allowed with each round of betting.

Betty Hutton -- Seven-card stud with nines and fives wild.

Bicycle -- A straight to the five . . . ace, two, three, four, five (Wheel).

Bid -- To declare for high or low in split-pot poker.

Big Bill -- A hundred dollars or a thousand dollars.

Big Blind -- The final and largest blind bet.

Big Bobtail -- A four-card straight flush.

Big Cat -- Five unpaired cards from the king to the eight.

Big Dog -- (1) Five unpaired cards from ace to nine. (2) A big underdog.

Big Full -- The highest possible full house.

Big One -- A thousand dollars.

Big Squeeze -- Six-card high-low stud with one twist.

Big Tiger -- See Big Cat.

Bill -- A dollar or a hundred dollars.

Bird Dog -- One who gets players for a game.

Blaze -- A five-card hand containing five picture cards.

Blaze Full -- A full house in picture cards.

Bleed -- To slowly bleed money from a game or a player.

Bleeder -- A tight, winning player.

Blind -- A mandatory or forced bet before the deal by the first player to the dealer's left.

Blind Bet -- To bet before looking at one's hand,

Blind Low -- Five-card stud bet blind all the way to the last bet.

Blind Open -- An opening bet made without looking at one's cards.

Blind Shuffle -- A cheater's shuffle used to stack cards or to leave stacked cards undisturbed after shuffling (False Shuffle).

Blind Tiger -- Draw poker with a blind open and a blind raise (Open Blind and Straddle).

Block System -- An ante, open, and first raise automatically done in the blind by the dealer.

Blood Poker -- A higher-stake poker game played primarily for money rather than for social reasons.

Blow Back -- A raise after previously calling or checking.

Bluff -- The attempt to win a pot by making better hands fold.

Blur Intensity -- The lightness or darkness of printing visible on partially flashed cards, indicating a high or a low card.

Board -- (1) The poker table. (2) All face-up cards in stud or hold 'em.

Bobtail Flush or Straight -- A four-card flush or a four-card, open-end straight.

Bolt -- To fold.

Bone -- A white chip, the lowest denomination chip.

Bonus -- A fixed sum established by house rules that is paid by each player to the holder of a very high-value hand such as a straight flush (Premium, Royalty, Penalties).

Book -- A three-card draw.

Boost -- To raise.

Border Work -- Markings added by cheaters to the printed borderlines of cards to identify their value.

Bottom Deal -- To deal cards off the bottom of the deck when cheating.

Bouillotte -- A French card game that influenced the open-card stud variation in poker.

Boxed Card -- A card turned the wrong way in a deck.

Boy -- A jack.

Brag -- The betting expression in the English game of Bragg.

Bragg -- An English three-card game that influenced the use of the full fifty-two-card deck in poker.

Braggers -- Jacks and nines as wild cards. Or the ace of diamonds, the jack of clubs, and the nine of diamonds as wild cards.

Brandeln -- A card game similar to Commerce.

Breakers -- Openers.

Breathe -- To pass the first opportunities to bet.

Brelen -- (1) A French card game that influenced the use of straights and flushes in poker. (2) Three of a kind.

Brelen Carre -- Four of a kind.

Brief -- A single stripper card in a deck used to facilitate illegal cuts.

Buck -- (1) A marker used to designate the dealer. (2) A marker or a knife used to designate the player permitted to deal a special hand, usually a hand with a dealer advantage such as draw. (3) A dollar.

Buddy Poker -- To avoid betting against a friend or a partner.

Buffalo -- To fool opponents.

Bug -- (1) The joker used in high-hand poker as an ace or as a wild card for filling straights and flushes. A wild card in lowball. Can be used in high-low as both a high card and a low card in the same hand (Joker). (2) A device fastened beneath the poker table by a cheater to hold out a card or cards.

Bull -- A player who raises frequently.

Bull or Bullet -- An ace.

Bull Montana -- Five-card stud with betting, then jacks required to open the final bet.

Bull the Game -- To bluff or bet aggressively.

Bump -- A raise.

Buried Card -- A card randomly inserted in the deck.

Burn -- (1) A full house. (2) To lose a hand. (3) Deal a burn card.

Burned, Burnt, or Burn Card -- (1) An exposed card put face-up on the bottom of the deck (2) A card dealt face down into the discards.

Busted Hand -- (1) A worthless hand (Bust). (2) A hand that failed to fill a straight or a flush on the draw.

Busy Card -- Any card that completes a hand.

Butcher Boy -- An open-hand form of poker where four of a kind is needed to win.

Button -- (1) A marker used to signify a theoretical dealer when there is a house dealer. (2) A second or third pair.

Buy -- (1) To call bets in order to draw cards. (2) To bluff someone out.

Buy In -- The stack of chips that a player buys at the start of a game.

By Me -- An expression meaning to pass or check.

- C -

California Lowball -- Low-ball in which ace, two, three, four, five is the best hand.

Call -- Money put in the pot to match a bet or raise.

Calling Station -- A player who calls almost any bet (Telephone Booth).

Carding -- Noting of exposed cards during a hand.

Card Odds -- The probabilities of being dealt or drawing to various hands

Cardsharp -- A cheater.

Cards Speak -- A rule that the value of a hand is based on what the cards are rather than on what a player declares.

Case Card -- The last available card of a particular value or suit.

Cash In -- To exchange poker chips for cash and then to quit (Cash Out).

Casino Poker -- Public poker played in gambling casinos.

Cat -- Any big or little tiger or cat hand.

Catbird Seat -- A position in high-low poker that assures a player at least half the pot.

Catch -- To be dealt a certain card or hand ... usually a desirable card or hand.

Chalk Hand -- An almost certain winner.

Chase -- To stay against a better hand.

Cheater -- A player who intentionally violates the rules to gain advantage unavailable to others.

Check -- To pass without betting.

Check Blind (Check in the Dark) -- To check without looking at one's own cards.

Check Cop -- A paste palmed in a cheater's hand and used to steal poker chips or to hold out cards.

Check Copping -- To steal poker chips.

Check Raise -- To check and then subsequently raise in the same round of betting.

Chicago -- Seven-card stud in which the hand with the highest spade wins half the pot.

Chicago Pelter -- A kilter.

Chicken Picken -- A game with eleven cards -- two cards in hand and nine on the table in rows of three.

Chink Ink -- A special ink used by cheaters to mark the edge of cards.

Chip -- Money represented by a plastic disc.

Chip Along -- To bet the smallest amount possible.

Chip Declaration -- To use chips in declaring for high or low.

Chip In -- To call a small bet.

Chipping -- Betting.

Choice Pots -- Dealer's choice.

Cinch Hand -- A certain winner (A Lock, an Immortal).

Cincinnati -- A ten-card game with five in each hand and five face-up for everyone's use (Lame Brains).

Cincinnati Liz -- Like Cincinnati, except the lowest face-up card is wild.

Clam -- A dollar.

Class -- Rank of a poker hand.

Closed Card -- A concealed card in one's hand.

Closed Game -- A game barred to newcomers or outsiders.

Closed Hand -- The concealed cards in one's hand as in draw poker.

Closed Poker -- Any form of poker in which all cards are dealt face-down.

Close to the Chest -- To play tight (Close to the Belly).

Club Poker -- Poker played in public card clubs. (See Gardena, California.)

C-Note -- A hundred-dollar bill.

Coffee Housing -- To act oppositely to one's emotions or situation.

Cold Deck -- (1) A deck from which poor hands are being dealt. (2) A prestacked deck.

Cold Feet -- A description for a player wanting to quit the game early.

Cold Hands -- (1) Showdown hands. (2) A run of poor hands.

Cold Turkey -- A pair of kings, back to back, on the first two cards in five-card stud.

Collection or Axe -- See Time Cut.

Collusion -- Two or more players working together to cheat other players.

Come -- See On the Come.

Come In -- To call.

Come Off -- To break up a lower-value hand to draw for a higher-value hand.

Commerce -- A three-card game with three cards in the widow.

Common Card (Communal Card) -- An exposed card for use in every player's hand.

Consecutive Declaration -- A rule for declaring high-low hands in consecutive order.

Contract -- To declare for high or low at the conclusion of split-pot poker.

Contract Poker -- High-low split-pot poker with oral declarations.

Cop -- To steal chips from the pot.

Corner Card -- An eight-card game -- five cards in hand and three on the table, with the last card up and all like it as wild.

Corner Flash -- To tear off a corner of a foreign card and to flash it as a real card in one's hand.

Cosmetics -- Preparations such as ashes, waxes, abrasives, aniline pencils, and luminous inks used by cheaters for marking cards (Daub).

Counter -- (1) One chip. (2) A player who continuously counts his chips.

Count Cards -- The jack, king, and queen (Court Cards, Face Cards, Picture Cards).

Coup -- A brilliant play.

Cowboy -- A king.

Crank -- To deal.

Crazy Otto -- Five-card stud with the lowest card as wild.

Crimp (Bridge) -- To bend and hump the upper or lower section of the deck to make a false or an illegal cut. (See Debone)

Crisscross -- Same as Southern Cross except five cards are laid out with the center one wild.

Crooked-Honest System (C-H System) -- The system of two cheaters in partnership: One catches a strong hand, and he signals the other to raise, thus squeezing all callers (Cross Life, Crossfire).

Cross (The Cross) -- Like Cincinnati, except the five cards are in a cross formation with the center card and all similar cards as wild.

Crosscards -- A ten-hand poker solitaire game (Patience Poker).

Crossfire -- See Crooked-Honest System.

Crossover -- A combination of draw and stud poker involving wild cards.

Cull -- To arrange or cluster good cards together for cheating.

Curfew -- The agreed-upon quitting lime.

Curse of Mexico -- The deuce of spades.

Curse of Scotland -- The nine of diamonds.

Customer -- An opponent who calls.

Cut the Cards -- Putting the bottom cards of a deck on top of the deck.

Cut the Pot -- Money withdrawn from pots for a purpose, such as to pay for refreshments.

- D -

Daub -- See Cosmetics (Golden Glow brand).

Dark Bet -- A blind bet.

Dead Cards -- Discarded or folded cards.

Dead Hand -- A foul hand that cannot be played.

Dead Man's Hand -- Usually aces and eights, two pair. Sometimes aces and eights, full house ... or jacks and eights, two pair.

Deadwood -- Dead cards.

Deal -- To distribute cards to the players.

Dealer -- (1) A person who deals the cards. (2) The operator of a gambling game in a casino.

Dealer-Advantage Game -- Any game where the dealer has an advantage.

Dealer's Choice -- The selection by dealer of game to be played.

Dealer's Percentage -- Any game offering the dealer a significant advantage (Dealer's Game, Dealer's Advantage).

Deal Off -- To deal the final hand of the game.

Deal Out -- To omit a player from a hand.

Debone -- A card or portion of a deck that has been crimped lengthwise or crosswise.

Deception -- An important and accepted tool of poker.

Deck -- All the cards used in the game (Pack)

Declare -- To announce if going for high or low.

Deep Low -- The lowest hand for any card (i.e., a deep seven is an ace, two, three, four, seven).

Defensive Bet -- A bet designed to decrease one's potential loss.

Dent -- To mark cards by creasing their corners (Rounding).

Deuce -- A two.

Deuces Wild -- Playing all deuces as wild cards.

Devil's Bedposts -- A four of clubs.

Diamond -- See Poker Diamond.

Dig -- To replenish one's stake or money while playing a hand.

Discard -- To exchange old cards for new cards during the draw or twist.

Disproportionate Bet -- A peculiar bet or a bet much larger or smaller than the normal bet.

Doctor Pepper -- Seven-card stud with deuces, fours, and tens wild.

Dog -- (1) Any big-dog or little-dog hand. (2) An underdog. Doghouse Cut -- Any cut that divides the deck into more than two stacks.

Double -- To raise.

Double-Barreled Shotgun -- High-low draw with four rounds of betting after the draw as each card is turned face-up (Texas Tech).

Double Bluff -- A bluff made by making a bluff bet on the final round and then reraising a subsequent raise.

Double-End Straight -- See Bobtail.

Double Header -- (1) A pot not won that passes to the next deal. (2) A second game that follows an earlier one.

Doubling Up -- Betting twice as much as the previous bet.

Down and Dirty -- The final hole card dealt in seven-card stud.

Down Cards -- Cards dealt face-down.

Down the Chute -- To take a heavy loss.

Down the River -- Seven-card stud.

Drag (Snatch) -- Money separated from a pot to signify the amount owed by a player (Light).

Draw -- The exchange of a card or cards for new ones.

Draw Out -- To catch the winning hand with the last card or with draw cards.

Draw Poker -- One of the two basic forms of poker (the other is stud). Played as a closed five-card hand with a closed draw.

Drawing Dead -- Drawing a hand that cannot win.

Drib -- An inferior player.

Driller -- A loose player. A player who bets and raises frequently.

Driver's Seat -- The player holding the best advantage.

Drop or Drop Out -- To retire from a hand by not calling a bet or raise (Fold).

Drum -- To play tight.

Drummer or Drummer Boy -- A tight player.

Dry -- To be out of money (Broke).

DTC Method -- The technique of good poker . . . Discipline, Thought. and then Control.

Duck -- A deuce.

Duffer -- An inexperienced or poor player.

Duke -- A hand of cards.

Dutch Straight -- See Alternate Straight.

Dynamite -- A two-card poker game.

- E -

Early Bet -- A small bet after the first card in stud or the first two cards in draw.

Edge -- (1) An advantageous position. (2) The dealer or sometimes the Age.

Edge Odds -- The advantage or disadvantage of a player relative to all other players.

Edge Shot -- A bet made from an advantageous position.

Eldest Hand -- The first player to the dealer's left.

Elimination -- Like Cincinnati, but cards matched with table cards are discarded (Weary Willie).

End Bet -- The last bet of an interval.

End Bets -- Last-round bets.

End Strippers -- Cards tapered along the ends for cheating.

English Poker -- Draw played with a blind opening.

English Stud -- A stud game with a draw.

Ethics or Etiquette -- The understandings and courtesies of which violations do not constitute cheating.

Exposed Cards -- Cards purposely dealt face-up as in stud.

- F -

Faced -- (1) A face-up card. (2) To receive a face card.

Fall of the Cards -- The order in which cards are dealt.

False Cut -- A cheater's cut in which the stacked portion of the deck remains intact on top of the deck.

False Openers -- A hand that has been opened improperly.

False Riffle -- A cheater's riffle used to keep stacked cards undisturbed after riffling.

False Shuffle -- See Blind Shuffle.

Family Pot -- A pot in which everyone calls the bet.

Farm System -- Several poker games at different stakes under control of a good player.

Fast Game -- A game with a fast betting pace.

Fatten -- To increase the money in the pot (Sweeten).

Feeble Phoebe -- Like Hollywood, except table cards are turned over two at a time and played for high and low.

Feed the Pot -- To bet or raise foolishly.

Feeler Bet -- A small or nominal bet made to seek out strength or raising tendencies of opponents.

Fever -- A five.

Filling -- Drawing and then catching a full house, flush, or straight.

Fin -- Five dollars.

Finger Poker -- A game run on credit.

Finn Poker -- To play poker with the objective of winning maximum money.

First Jack Deals -- A method to determine who has the first deal.

First Hand -- The first player allowed to bet a hand.

Fish -- An easy or a poor player.

Fish Hook -- A seven or a jack.

Five and Dime -- A hand containing a five and a ten with three unpaired cards in between.

Five-Card Stud -- Stud poker played with one hole card and four exposed cards.

Five of a Kind -- Five cards of the same value.

Fix -- To prearrange the cards or stack the deck.

Fixed Limit -- Betting with agreed-upon limits or maximums.

Flash -- (1) To expose concealed cards (2) To turn up a common card for everyone's use when insufficient cards are available to complete a stud game. (3) Five cards, one of each suit plus the joker.

Flat Limit -- A game in which only one consistent amount is allowed for all bets and raises.

Flat Poker -- Poker with a blind open.

Flicker Flicker -- Five-card, high-low stud.

Flinger -- A wild or crazy player.

Flip Stud -- Five-card stud in which the optional hole card and matching hole cards are wild.

Floorman -- (1) A cardroom manager. (2) Shift boss in a casino.

Flop -- The first three exposed cards in hold 'em poker.

Flush -- Five cards of the same suit.

Fluss (Flux] -- A flush.

Foiling the Cut -- A cheater's method of returning cards to their original position after a cut.

Fold -- To drop out of a hand by not calling the bet or raise (Drop).

Football -- A stud game similar to baseball involving sixes and threes as wild cards.

Force-in -- A mandatory blind bet, usually with an option to raise.

Foul Hand -- A hand containing the wrong number of cards.

Four Flush -- Four cards of the same suit.

Four-Flusher -- (1) A cheater. (2) One who tries to win pots by purposely miscalling his hand.

Four Forty Four -- Eight-card stud with fours wild.

Four of a Kind -- Four cards of the same value (Fours).

Fox -- an expert player.

Freak -- A joker or a wild card.

Freak Hands -- Nonstandard poker hands such as Blazers, Dutch Straights, Kilters, and Skeets.

Free Ride -- Playing without paying.

Free Roll -- A lock on half the pot with a chance to win the whole pot.

Free Wheeler -- A bankrupt player allowed to play free until he wins a pot.

Freeze Out -- A rule requiring player to leave the game after losing a certain amount of cash.

Freezer -- A call for less than the amount of the bet in table stakes (Short Call).

Friend -- A card that improves a hand.

Full House, Full Barn, or Full Tub -- Three of a kind with another pair (Full Hand).

Fundamental Position -- The value of a player's hand relative to the other player's hands.

Fuzzing -- Mixing the cards by continuously stripping off the top and bottom cards (Milking, Snowing Cards).

- G -

Gallery -- Nonplaying spectators.

Gambler -- A player who wagers money at unfavorable edge odds.

Gambler's Last Charge -- A game played with five hand cards and five table cards with the last card turned up being wild when matched in one's hand (If).

Gambling -- Betting money at unfavorable investment and edge odds.

Game Behavior -- Artificial behavior used in a poker game.

Game Pace -- Betting done on various hands compared to betting normally done on those hands.

Gang Cheating -- Two or more players cheating in collusion.

Gap -- The missing space (card) required to fill a straight.

Garbage -- The discards.

Gardena, California -- The Mecca for public club poker.

Gardena Razz -- See Razz (2).

Ge -- A pair.

Ghost Hand -- A hand that reappears on the next deal because of inadequate shuffling.

Giant Twist -- A twist allowing the exchange of up to all of one's cards.

Gilet (Gillet or Gile) -- An old French card game that was the predecessor of Brelan.

Gimmick -- See Gaff.

Girl -- A queen.

Gi-Till-Satisfy -- Unlimited giant twisting with progressively increasing costs for new cards.

Gleek -- {1) Three of a kind. (2) An early English card game.

Go -- To start dealing.

Go All In -- To bet all of one's money in table stakes.

Going Better -- A raise.

Going In -- A call.

Golden Chairs -- Player with four held cards and three table cards with one's low card sometimes played as wild.

Golden Glow -- A superior brand of daub. (See Cosmetics.)

Good Hand -- A winning hand.

Good Player -- A player who extracts maximum money from the game.

Go Out -- To drop.

Grand -- A thousand dollars.

Gravy -- One's winnings.

Greek -- A cardsharp (Grec).

Greek Bottom -- The second card from the bottom dealt by a dishonest player.

Grifter -- A cheater.

Gut Shot -- See Belly Hit.

Guts to Open -- To allow any value hand to open.

- H -

Hand -- The cards dealt to a player.

Hand Cards -- Concealed cards that are dealt face-down.

Hand Pace -- The extent of betting, calling, raising, and bluffing compared to the size of the pot.

Head to Head -- Two people playing poker.

Heavy -- A pot with too much money.

Hedge Bet -- A side bet to limit possible losses.

Heeler -- A kicker.

Heinz -- Seven-card stud with fives and sevens wild and also penalty cards.

Help -- To improve a hand on receiving additional cards in stud or draw poker.

Hidden Declarations -- A rule for declaring high-low hands by concealing different color chips in one's hand.

Highball -- Poker in which the highest hand wins.

High-Low -- A game in which the highest and lowest hands split the pot.

High Spade in Hole -- Seven-card stud in which the hand with the high spade in the hole divides the pot with the high hand.

Hilo Pocalo -- Five-card stud in which the up cards can be refused and passed to the player on the left (Take It or Leave It).

Hit -- A draw or catch that improves one's hand.

Hokum -- A stud variation providing an option to receive cards face-up or face-down.

Hold 'em (Hold Me Darling) -- A seven-card game with two face-down cards for each player and five face-up cards for everyone's use (Tennessee Hold Me, Texas Hold 'em).

Hold Out -- To cheat by concealing a card or cards for future use.

Hold Out Device -- A mechanical device used by cheaters to hold out a card or cards (See Bug, Lizard, Spider).

Hole Cards -- Cards dealt face-down in stud.

Hole-Card Stud -- Five-card stud in which betting starts on the first hole card.

Hollywood -- Fifteen-card Cincinnati with five in each hand and ten table cards.

Holy City -- A big hand, usually with aces and picture cards.

Honest Readers -- The normal marks or irregularities on any deck of cards.

Honor Card -- A ten or higher value card.

Hook -- A jack.

Hot Deck -- A deck from which good hands are being dealt.

Hot Hands -- A run of high-value hands.

Hot Pot -- A special pot, usually played for higher stakes (Pistol Stud).

Hot Streak -- A run of good "luck" or winning hands (Spinner).

House -- A person or organization running a poker game for profit.

House Cut -- The amount cut from pots for the house, club, or casino.

House Game -- A poker game in which admission is charged or the pots are cut for the host's profit. Considered illegal in most states.

House Rules -- Rules, especially betting, agreed upon by the players.

Hoyles -- Any accepted rules for card games.

Humps -- See Belly Strippers.

Hurricane -- Two-card poker.

- I -

Ideal Edge Odds -- The theoretical maximum edge odds, which are impossible to achieve.

Idle Card -- A card that adds no value to a hand.

"If" -- See Gambler's Last Charge.

Ignorant End of a Straight -- The lowest end of a straight, especially in Hold 'em.

Immortal -- (1) The best possible hand. (2) A certain winner.

Improve -- To draw cards that improve one's hand.

In -- To remain in the pot.

In Action -- The time when a player is involved in playing his hand.

In a Row (Line) -- A sequence or a straight.

Index -- (1) The number or letter printed on the corners of cards. (2) The marks a cheater puts on the edge of cards.

Indirect Bet -- An opponent betting or raising for a player sandbagging a strong hand.

Inside Straight -- A broken sequence of four cards, such as three, five, six, seven.

Insurance -- A side bet to ensure winning some money in a large pot.

Intentional Flashing -- Purposely flashing or showing one's closed cards to an opponent.

In the Hole -- Cards dealt face-down in stud poker.

In the Middle -- The position of the players calling bets between two raising players (Middle Man).

Investment Odds -- The estimated returns on betting investments.

Iron Duke -- An unbeatable hand (Ironclad Hand).

- J -

Jackpots -- See Jacks to Open.

Jacks to Open -- Draw poker in which jacks or better are required to open (Jackpots).

Jack Up -- To raise.

Jam -- A hand in which several players are raising each other.

Jinx -- A curse of bad luck.

Jog -- An unevenly stacked deck used by a cheater to mark where his partner should cut the deck (Step).

John, Jake, J-Boy -- A jack.

Joker -- The 53rd card added to a deck (See Bug).

Joker Poker -- Poker played with the joker as wild.

Jonah -- An unlucky player.

- K -

K-Boy -- A king.

Key Card -- An important card needed to complete a hand.

Key Player -- A player with important influence over the game.

Kibitzer -- A commenting spectator.

Kicker -- An extra card held with a pair, trips, or four of a kind during the draw or twist.

Kick-it -- To bump or raise the pot.

Killing It -- Taking the final raise allowed.

Kilter -- A five-card hand starting with the ace and alternating values to the nine.

King without the Mustache -- The king of hearts as wild.

Kitty -- Money cut from pots.

Knave -- A jack.

Knock -- To check or pass by rapping the table.

Knock Poker -- Draw poker with rummy drawing.

Ku Klux Klan -- Three kings.

- L -

Lady -- A queen.

Lalapolooze -- A freak hand allowed to win only once a night.

Lame Brain Pete -- Same as Cincinnati, except the lowest exposed card and all cards like it are wild.

Lame Brains -- See Cincinnati.

Las Vegas Riffle -- A faster, more concealed method of riffling cards. At times used for cheating.

Lay Down -- The revealing of hands after the last bet.

Lay Odds -- To offer a larger bet against a smaller bet.

Lead -- To make the first bet.

Leader -- The player who is betting first.

Lid -- The top card or the card of a single-card draw.

Light -- Money separated from a pot to signify the amount owed by a player.

Limit -- The maximum bet or raise allowed.

Limit Stakes -- Poker with maximum bets and raises established by the house rules.

Limp In -- The calling of a bet.

Little Blind -- The first and smallest blind bet.

Little Bobtail -- A three-card straight flush.

Little Cat -- Five unpaired cards from the eight to the three.

Little Dog -- Five unpaired cards from the seven to the two.

Little Squeeze -- Five-card high-low stud with a twist.

Little Tiger -- See Little Cat.

Little Virginia -- Six-card stud with one's low hole card as wild.

Live Blind -- A blind bettor with an option to raise.

Live Card -- A card that has not been dealt or exposed.

Live Hand -- A hand with a good chance to improve.

Lizard -- A hold-out device that works up and down a cheater's sleeve.

Lock -- A hand that cannot lose.

Long Studs -- Stud poker with more than five cards dealt to each player.

Look -- To call.

Looking Down One's Throat -- Having an unbeatable hand against an opponent.

Lowball -- Poker in which the lowest hand wins, and five, four, three, two, ace is the perfect low.

Low Hole -- A stud game in which one's lowest hole card and all matching cards are wild.

Low Poker -- Poker in which the lowest hand wins, and seven, five, four, three, two is the perfect low.

Luck -- An illusion of winning or losing beyond statistical reality.

Luck Out -- To outdraw and beat a good hand.

Luminous Readers -- Cards marked by cheaters with a special ink so the markings can be seen through special lenses or glasses (See Pink Eye).

- M -

Main Pot -- The first pot apart from side pots.

Major Hand -- A straight or better.

Major-League Game -- The largest-stake game of several poker games.

Make Good -- To pay money owed to the pot.

Make the Pack -- To shuffle and prepare the cards for dealing.

Marked Cards -- Cards with inconspicuous markings that enable cheaters to read them from the back side.

Marker -- (1) See Buck. (2) A promissory note.

Matching Card -- A card of the same value or suit as another card.

Match It -- Five-card stud with one's hole card becoming wild if matched by an up card.

Match the Pot -- To put in the pot an amount equal to that already there.

Mate -- A card that matches or pairs another card.

Maximum-Win Approach -- A playing strategy that directs all effort toward winning maximum money.

Mechanic -- A dishonest dealer who cheats by manipulating the cards.

Mechanic's Grip -- A special way to hold a deck for dishonest dealing.

Meet a Bet -- To call the full bet.

Mexican Stud -- Five-card stud in which cards are dealt down, and the player has an option to choose his hole card.

Mickey Mouse -- A worthless hand.

Middle Dealer -- A cheater who can deal cards from the middle of the deck.

Middle Man -- See In the Middle.

Milker -- A tight player.

Milking the Cards -- See Fuzzing.

Milking the Game -- The slow draining of money from the game by tight playing.

Minnie -- The perfect low hand.

Minor-League Game -- A smaller-stake game.

Misdeal -- A faulty deal resulting in a redeal.

Misére -- The English name for low.

Miss -- The failure to draw a helpful card.

Mistigris -- A wild joker.

Money Flow -- The direction, amount, and pattern that money passes among players in a game. Measures the money that can be won or lost per unit of time.

Monkey Flush -- A three-card flush.

Monte -- A three-card poker game.

Moon -- (1) To win both halves of a split-pot game. [2) To declare for both high and low.

Moon Hand -- A hand of good high and low value.

Mortgage -- Seven-card stud requiring a player to win twice before winning the pot.

Mouth Bet -- A bet not backed by money.

Murder -- A two-card or a six-card high-low game with several twists.

Mystical Attitude -- An irrational, unreasoned attitude.

- N -

Natural -- A hand without wild cards.

Neocheater -- A player who wins by Neocheating.

Neocheating -- Simple, invisible, highly effective cheating techniques.

New-Breed Player -- An Advanced-Concept player in public or casino poker.

New Guinea Stud -- Seven-card stud starting with four down cards, followed by turning up or rolling any two cards.

New York Stud -- Five-card stud in which a four flush beats a pair.

Nickel-Dime -- A small-stake game.

Nigger Bet -- An unusual bet such as a $9 bet instead of the normal $10 bet.

Nigger Mike -- Six-card draw with a bet on each dealt card.

Nits and Lice -- (1) Two pair or a full house of deuces and threes (Mites and Lice). (2) Deuces and threes as wild cards.

No Limit -- The allowing of any size bet or raise (Sky's the Limit).

Northern Flight -- Seven-card stud with all hearts wild, unless a spade is in the hand.

Nucleus Players -- The dependable, regular players.

Nursing -- Fondling cards.

Nut -- The winnings needed to survive as a professional.

Nuts -- A hand that is a certain winner.

- O -

Odds -- The chances of getting various hands or cards.

Odds Against -- The number of failures per success.

Odds For -- The number of attempts per success.

Odds On -- Odds at less than even money.

Offensive Bet -- A bet designed to build the pot.

Office Hours -- A straight from a five to a nine, or from a four to an eight.

Omaha -- Seven-card stud with two hole cards in one's hand and five table cards that are rolled up one at a time.

One-End or One-Way Straight -- A four-card straight open only on one end, such as jack, queen, king, ace.

One-Eye Jacks -- The jack of hearts and jack of spades as wild cards.

One Eyes -- Picture cards with profiles showing only one eye (Jack of Hearts, Jack of Spades, and the King of Diamonds).

On the Come -- To bet before one has made a good hand.

On Tilt -- Playing very poorly or wildly, usually after losing badly or winning big.

Open -- The first bet of the first round.

Open at Both Ends or Open End -- A four-card sequence that can be made a straight by two different value cards.

Open Blind -- (1) To open without looking at one's cards. (2) A forced open.

Open Blind and Straddle -- A forced opening bet followed by a forced raise.

Open Cards -- Face-up cards in stud (Up Cards).

Opener -- The player who opens the pot.

Openers -- A hand with which the betting can be started.

Open Game -- A game in which anyone can play.

Open Pair -- An exposed pair in stud.

Open Poker -- Stud poker.

Open Seat -- A chair available for another player.

Option -- Five-card, high-low stud with a twist.

Option Card -- (1) A card that may be either kept or exchanged (Twist). (2) A stud card that may be either kept in the hole or exposed.

Original Hand -- The cards dealt to a player before the draw.

Outs -- A poor hand that can win on the draw.

Overcall -- The calling of a big bet after others have called.

Overcard -- A card that is higher than any card showing.

Overcards -- Cards that rank higher than a pair.

Overhand Shuffle -- A shuffle made by sliding cards from the top of the deck into the other hand.

Overhand Stack -- An overhand shuffling technique for stacking cards.

- P -

Pack -- The deck of cards.

Packet -- A portion of the pack.

Pa Ferguson -- Five-card stud with high card on board and all cards like it as wild.

Paint -- A face card in a lowball hand.

Pair -- Two cards of the same value.

Palmed Card -- A card concealed for future use by a cheater.

Pan or Panguingue -- A form of rummy played in some Nevada casinos and California poker clubs.

Paperwork -- Markings added to cards by cheaters.

Partners -- Collusion cheaters.

Pass -- To check or drop out instead of betting.

Pass and Out -- A game in which checking is not allowed on the first round.

Passed Pot -- When no one opens the pot.

Pass-Out -- To fold when a bet or a fold is required.

Pass the Deal -- To relinquish one's turn to deal.

Pass the Trash (Garbage) -- A high-low stud game involving the exchanging of cards among players.

Pasteboard -- A card.

Pat Hand -- A hand in which the player keeps all his cards without drawing or twisting new cards.

Patience Poker -- See Crosscards.

Peeker or Peeper -- (l) One who looks at an active player's hand (2) A cheater who peeks at cards yet to be dealt.

Peek Poker -- Seven-card stud.

Peep and Turn -- See Mexican Stud.

Pelter (Bracket) -- A five-card hand containing a two, five, nine, and one card either a three or a four, and the other card either a six, seven or eight (Skeet).

Penalties -- See Bonus.

Penny Ante -- A very low-stake game.

Penultimate Card -- The next to the last card in the deck.

Percentage -- (1) The house cut. (2) Probabilities expressed as percentages.

Perdue -- Cards turned down.

Perfect Low -- An unbeatable lowball hand, such as ace, two, three, four, five; or ace, two, three, four, six, or two, three, four, five, seven depending on the game.

Philosopher -- A cardsharp.

Pick Up Checks -- To allow a player to bet or raise the limit for every check made before his play.

Picture Card -- A jack, queen, or king.

Pigeon -- (1) An easy player or a sucker. (2) A valuable card for a hand.

Pig in the Poke -- See Wild Widow.

Pile -- A player's money.

Pinch -- Five dollars.

Pineapple Hold 'em -- A hold 'em variation involving three hole cards and discarding one.

Pink Eye (Red Eye) -- A pink-tinted contact lens worn by a cheater to identify marked cards or luminous readers. (See Luminous Readers)

Pips -- The spots or marks on the face of a card.

Piranha -- An aggressive bettor.

Pistol Stud -- See Hole-Card Stud.

Place and Show Tickets Split Pot with Twist Your Neighbor -- A game in which cards are drawn from hands of other players and the pot is split between the second and third best hands.

Place Tickets -- (1) The second best hand. (2) Draw poker in which the second best hand wins.

Play -- To call or stay in

Play Back -- To declare a false stake in table stakes.

Played Card -- A card dealt to a hand.

Poch -- The best pair, three of a kind, or four of a kind.

Pochen -- A German card game from which the name poker was partly derived.

Point -- The value of a card.

Poker -- A money-management game that uses cards for manipulation and deception for winning.

Poker Diamond -- A diagram that measures the idealness of a game.

Poker Dice -- Cubical dice, each with a nine, ten, jack, queen, king, and ace on its six faces.

Poker Face -- A face not showing any emotion or change in expression.

Poker Rules -- A loose, flexible framework of traditions for playing poker.

Poker Solitaire -- See Crosscards.

Pone -- The player on the dealer's right.

Pool -- A pot.

Poque -- (1) A French card game from which the name of poker was partly derived. (2) A French betting expression.

Position -- The relative situation of a player to the other players (Fundamental Position, Seat Position, Technical Position).

Pot -- The area in which antes, bets, and raises are placed.

Pothooks -- Nines.

Pot Limit -- Poker stakes in which the maximum permitted bet is the size of the pot.

Pot-Limit Dig -- Pot-Limit poker with no table-stake restrictions.

Poverty Poker -- A game in which a player can lose only a predetermined amount, after which he can play with the winners' money.

Powerhouse -- A very strong hand.

Premium -- See Bonus.

Primero -- An old, betting card game of Spanish origin.

Private Poker -- Poker played without money being cut for the house or for the host's profit.

Proctor and Gamble -- A game with four cards in each hand and three rolled table cards with the last card and all like it as wild.

Progression of Bets -- The increase in betting limits for each round of betting.

Progressive Poker -- A game in which the ante, bets, and opener requirements increase after a passed pot.

Public Poker -- Poker played in gambling casinos or in public card clubs in which the pots are cut for profit.

Pull Through -- A false shuffling technique used by cheaters.

Punching -- Marking cards with pinpricks.

Punters -- Those who gamble against the banker.

Puppy Feet -- Clubs.

Puppy Foot -- The ace of clubs.

Push -- Passing unwanted cards to players on one's left.

Put Up -- To pay money owed to the pot.

- Q -

Qualifier -- The minimum value hand allowed to win the pot.

Quart -- A four-card straight flush.

Quint -- A straight flush.

Quint Major -- A royal straight flush.

Quitting Time -- An agreed-upon time to end a poker game (Curfew).

Quorum -- The minimum number of players needed to start a poker game.

- R -

Rabbit Hunting -- Looking through the undealt deck of cards.

Rags -- Worthless cards.

Raise -- To increase the bet.

Raise Blind -- (1) To raise without looking at one's cards. (2) A forced raise.

Rake-Off -- Money taken from the pot by the house or casino (Rake).

Rangdoodles -- A game in which the betting limit is increased after a very good hand such as four of a kind.

Rank -- The relative value of hands.

Rat Holer -- A player who pockets his money or winnings during the game.

Razz -- (1) Seven-card lowball stud. (2) Draw poker in which the winner of the previous pot bets last (Gardena Razz).

Readable Pattern -- A behavior pattern that reveals the value of a player's hand.

Readers -- Marked cards.

Redeal -- A new deal after a misdeal.

Redskin -- A face card.

Rembrandt -- Any game in which all face cards are wild.

Reraise -- A raise after having been raised.

Rest Farm -- An expression for the whereabouts of a player driven from a game because of heavy losses.

Restraddle -- The third blind bet that is twice as much as the straddle or the second blind bet.

Restricted Pot -- A rule requiring a minimum-value hand to win the pot (Qualifier).

Ribbon Clerk -- (1) A player unwilling to play poker at higher stakes or at a faster pace. (2) A small-time gambler.

Rickey de Laet -- A form of Mexican Stud in which the player's hole cards and all like them are wild for him.

Ride Along -- To remain in a hand because no bets are made.

Ride the Pot -- To go light.

Riffle -- To flip with the thumb through the edge of a deck.

Riffle Cull -- A technique for arranging cards in preparation for stacking the deck.

Riffle Shuffle -- To shuffle by riffling the cards together.

Riffle Stack -- A technique for stacking the deck.

Right to Bet -- A rule allowing every player the right to bet or raise at least once per round regardless of the number of raises during that round.

Ring Game -- A full game.

Ring In -- Slipping an unfair or stacked deck into play.

Robin Hood Cheater -- One who cheats for someone else without benefiting himself.

Roll or Rolled Card (Rolling, Rolling Up) -- A face-down table card or cards turned up one at a time, usually with a round of betting after each exposure.

Rolled Up -- The first three cards being three of a kind.

Roll Your Own Baseball -- Same as baseball, except one of three original hole cards is turned up, and the low hole card and all like it are wild.

Roodles -- A round of play at increased stakes (Wangdoodle).

Rotation -- Movement in the direction of the deal ... clockwise.

Rough -- The highest lowball hand of a given value, such as seven, six, five, four, three.

Round of Betting -- The action sequence in which each player is allowed to check, open, bet, raise, or drop.

Round of Play -- The action sequence in which every player deals a poker hand.

Round the World -- The same as Cincinnati, except four cards are dealt to each player and four cards are dealt to the widow.

Rounding -- See Dent.

Routine -- A straight flush.

Rover -- One unable to play because the game is full.

Royal -- The best possible lowball hand.

Royal Flush -- A straight flush to the ace.

Royals -- See Eagles.

Royalties -- See Bonus.

Rub the Spots Off -- To excessively shuffle the cards.

Run -- A sequence or a straight.

Run One -- An attempt to bluff.

Runt -- A hand of mixed suits and no pairs.

Run Up a Hand -- To stack a deck during the day, often by culling discards.

Rush -- A winning streak.

- S -

Sanding -- A system of marking cards by sanding the edges or ends of cards.

Sawbuck -- Ten dollars.

Say -- The turn of a player to declare what to do.

Scarne Cut -- To cut by pulling cards from the center of the deck and placing them on top of the deck.

Schenck's Rules -- First known rules of poker printed in England in 1872.

Schoolboy Draw -- An unsound draw.

Scooping -- See Shoot the Moon.

Screwy Louie -- Similar to Anaconda, except discards are passed to the player on one's left.

Seat Position -- The position of a player relative to the other players.

Seat Shot -- A bet or raise made from an advantageous seat position.

Second -- The second card from the top of the deck being dealt.

Second Best -- The best losing hand.

Second Deal -- To deal the second card from the top of the deck when cheating.

See -- To call in the final round of betting.

Seed -- An ace.

Selling a Hand -- A strategy to get opponents to call.

Sequence -- Cards of consecutive value as in a straight (e.g., four, five, six, seven, eight).

Sequential Declaration -- The last bettor or raiser being required to declare his hand in high-low poker.

Session -- The period in which a poker game is held.

Set -- Three or four of a kind.

Seven-Card Flip -- Seven-card stud in which the first four cards are dealt down and then the player turns any two up.

Seven-Card Pete -- Seven-card stud with all sevens as wild ... or one's low-hole card (or one's last card) and all like it as wild.

Seven-Card Stud or Seven-Toed Pete -- Stud poker played with three hole cards and four exposed cards.

Sevens Rule -- A rule in low-ball in which anyone with seven low or better must bet or forfeit further profits from the pot.

Seven-Toed Pete -- Seven-card stud.

Sharp, Sharper, or Sharker -- A cheater (Cardsharp).

Sharp Top -- An ace.

Shifting Sands -- The same as Mexican stud except one's hole card and all matching cards are wild.

Shill -- A house man or woman who actively plays in the game for the house, club, or casino.

Shiner -- A tiny mirror or any reflecting device used by a cheater to see unexposed cards.

Shoe -- A device from which cards are dealt.

Shoot the Moon -- To declare both high and low in an attempt to win both halves of a highlow pot (Moon, Scooping, Swinging).

Short -- Insufficient money or cards (Shy).

Short Call -- To call part of a bet in table stakes with all the money one has on the table.

Short Pair -- A pair lower than openers, such as a pair of tens in jackpots.

Short Stud -- Five-card stud.

Shotgun -- Draw poker with extra rounds of betting that start after the third card is dealt.

Shove Them Along -- Five-card stud in which each player has the choice to keep his first up card dealt to him or to pass it to the player on his left (Take It or Leave It).

Show -- To expose one's cards.

Show Cards -- The exposed cards in stud.

Showdown -- (1) The showing of cards at the end of a hand. (2) An open hand played for a predetermined amount.

Show Tickets -- (1) The third best hand. (2) Draw poker in which the third best hand wins.

Shuffle -- To mix the cards prior to dealing.

Shy -- See Short.

Side Arms -- The second pair of two pair.

Side Bet -- Any bet made outside the pot.

Side Cards -- Cards that do not influence the value rank of a hand.

Side Money or Side Pot -- The amount set aside from the main pot in table stakes.

Side Strippers -- Cards tapered along the Sides for cheating.

Sight -- To call for a show of hands after tapping out.

Signals -- The system that collusion cheaters use to secretly exchange information about their cards and instructions about betting and raising.

Silent Partner -- An innocent player used by a cheater as an unwitting partner.

Simultaneous Declaration -- High-low poker in which everyone declares his hand at the same time.

Sixty-six -- Six-card stud with sixes wild.

Skeet -- See Pelter.

Skeet Flush -- A skeet in one suit.

Skin -- A dollar.

Skin Game -- A game having two or more collusion cheaters.

Skinning the Hand -- A cheater's technique to get rid of extra cards.

Skip Straight or Skipper -- See Alternate Straight.

Skoon -- A dollar.

Sky's the Limit -- A game in which no maximum is placed on any bets or raises.

Slicked-Aced Deck -- A deck with chemically treated slippery aces that allows a cheater to locate the aces from within a deck.

Slow Play -- Passively allowing opponents to bet while holding a strong hand.

Smooth -- The lowest lowball hand of a given value, such as seven, four, three, two, ace, for a seven low.

Smooth Call -- Making a call with a raising hand.

Snarker -- A player who wins a pot and then ridicules the loser.

Snatch Game -- A casino or house game in which pots are excessively cut or raked, often covertly.

Snow -- To fake or bluff.

Snowing Cards -- See Fuzzing.

Sorts -- A deck of cards made up of irregular or imperfect cards sorted from many normal decks of cards.

Southern Cross -- A variation of Cincinnati with nine up cards arranged in a cross.

Spider -- A hold-out device attached to the cheater's coat or vest.

Spike -- (1) An ace. (2) A pair in lowball.

Spinner -- A winning streak (Hot Streak).

Spit Card -- A card turned up that is used in every player's hand.

Spit in the Ocean -- A draw game in which an exposed card and all matching cards are wild.

Split Openers -- To break up the hand required to open.

Split Pair -- A pair in stud with one card in the hole and the other exposed.

Split Pot -- A pot equally divided between two winners.

Spot -- An ace.

Spot Card -- Any card from the deuce to the tell.

Spots -- The printed marks on the face side of a card.

Spread -- (1) A hand. (2) An illegal exchange of cards between two collusion cheaters.

Squared Deck -- An evenly stacked deck ready for cutting or dealing.

Squeeze -- To look at cards by slowly spreading them apart (Sweat).

Squeeze Bet or Raise -- To bet or raise against another strong hand in order to extract more money from a third player holding a weaker hand.

Squeezed Player -- A caller who is being bet into and raised by players on both sides of him (Whipsaw).

Squeezers -- Cards with suit and value indicators printed at the corners.

Stack -- (1) A pile of chips. (2) To cheat by prearranging cards to be dealt.

Stacked Deck -- A deck with prearranged cards for a dishonest deal.

Stake -- The money with which a player enters a game.

Stand -- To decline a draw.

Stand Pat -- To play the original hand without drawing.

Stand-off -- A tie.

Stay -- To remain in the hand by calling the bet or raise.

Stenographers -- Four queens.

Step -- See Jog.

Still Pack -- The deck not in play when two decks are used.

Stinger -- A sequence.

Stock -- (1) The cards remaining in the deck after dealing. (2) The stacked portion of a deck.

Stonewall -- One who calls to the end with a poor hand.

Stormy Weather -- Similar to Spit in the Ocean, except three cards are dealt in the center.

Straddle -- (1) A forced or a compulsory raise (Blind Raise). (2) The right to buy the last-bettor position.

Straight -- Five cards in sequence, such as three, four, five, six, seven.

Straight Draw -- Draw poker not requiring openers.

Straight Flush -- Five cards of the same suit in sequence.

Stranger -- A new or unfamiliar card in a hand after the draw.

Streak -- A run of winning or losing hands.

String Bet -- A hesitating bet made in segments to lure giveaway reactions from other players, especially those on one's left -- not allowed in most casinos and poker clubs.

Stringer -- A straight.

Stripped Deck -- A deck used with certain cards purposely removed, such as the deuces.

Stripper Deck -- A dishonest deck with slightly wedge-shaped cards (usually one thirty-second of an inch tripped off the card's edge or side) allowing the cheater to pull certain cards from the deck. (See Belly Strippers, Side Strippers, End Strippers, Brief.)

Strip Poker -- A game in which the loser of each pot must remove an article of clothing.

Stud Poker -- One of the two basic forms of poker (the other is draw) and played with open or exposed cards (up cards) and with one or more concealed hole cards (down cards).

Substitution -- An exchange of a card for one from the deck (Twist).

Suck -- To call when the proper play is to fold.

Sudden Death -- High-low five-card stud.

Suicide King -- The king of hearts ... the king with a sword pointed at its head.

Suit -- Any of the four sets (clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades) in a deck of cards.

Super Seven-Card Stud -- A game starting with five cards to each player; then after discarding two, the game proceeds as in seven-card stud.

Sweeten -- To add more money to a pot such as an extra ante.

Swinging -- See Shoot the Moon.

- T -

Table Cards -- Cards turned face-up on the table for use in everyone's hand, such as used in Cincinnati.

Table Stakes -- Stakes in which the betting and raising is limited to the amount of money a player has in front of him.

Take It or Leave It -- See Shove Them Along.

Take Out -- The number of chips a player starts with in table stakes.

Take the Lead -- To make a bet or raise.

Talon -- The remainder of the deck after the deal.

Tap -- To bet all one's money in table stakes.

Tap City -- A player having gone broke in a game.

Tap Out -- To bet and lose all one's cash, forcing one to leave the game.

Tap You -- (1) An expression for a player betting an amount equal to all the money his opponent has on the table in table stakes. (2) A raise.

Technical Position -- The strategic and psychological advantage of a player relative to the other players.

Telephone Booth -- A very loose player (Calling Station).

Tells -- Characteristics, habits, or actions of a player that give away his hand or intentions.

Tennessee -- Draw poker in which a bet is made after each round of cards is dealt.

Tennessee Hold Me -- See Hold 'em.

Tens High -- Poker in which no hand higher than a pair of tens can win.

Ten Ten -- High-low five-card stud with ten for low and a pair of tens for high as qualifiers. Usually played with two twists.

Texas Hold 'em -- See Hold 'em.

Texas Special or Texas Tech -- See Double-Barreled Shotgun.

The Diamond -- A measurement of the idealness of a poker game for the good player.

Thirty Days or Thirty Miles -- Three tens.

Thirty Three -- Six-card stud with threes wild.

Three-Card Monte -- A three-card game similar to Bragg.

Three of a Kind -- Three cards of the same value (Treys, Triplets, Trips).

Three-Toed Pete -- Three-card poker.

Throat Shot -- An expression for a player barely losing a big pot.

Throw Off -- To discard.

Throw Up a Hand -- To fold.

Ticket -- A card.

Tie -- Two hands of equal value. The pot is usually divided between tied hands that win.

Tierce -- A three-card straight flush.

Tiger -- A low hand from the two to the seven.

Tight Player -- A player who seldom bets unless he has a strong hand.

Time Cut -- Money charged each player on a time basis by a casino or poker club. Charge is usually on a 3 minute or an hourly basis (Axe, Collection).

Time Game -- Poker game in which players are charged by the house, club, or casino a specified amount each hour or half hour for playing privileges.

Toke -- A tip, especially to a dealer in a gambling casino.

Top -- To beat an opponent.

Tough Player -- A superior poker player.

Trey -- A three.

Tricon -- Three of a kind.

Trio, Triplets, or Trips -- Three of a kind.

Trips Eight -- Stud or draw split-pot poker with an eight for low and trips for high as qualifiers. Often played with one or two twists.

Tulsa -- See Omaha.

Turn -- A player's chance to deal, receive cards, or bet.

Turn Down -- To fold.

Turnie-Turnie -- See Mexican Stud.

Twenty-Deck Poker -- Poker played with twenty cards. All cards lower than tens are removed.

Twin Beds -- A high-low game involving five cards in each hand and ten turned up on the table.

Twist -- A draw in stud or an extra draw in draw poker.

Twist Your Neighbor -- To draw cards from the hands of other players.

Two-Card Poker -- Any poker game in which the best two cards win.

Two Pair -- Two separate pairs of different values in a hand.

Two Pair Nine -- Stud or draw split-pot poker with a nine for low and two pair for high as qualifiers. Often played with one or two twists.

Two-Way Hand -- A hand having possibilities of winning both high and low halves of a split-pot game.

- U -

Undercut -- (1) The final down card being the lowest hole card in low-hole stud. (2) A shuffling technique for preparing a stacked deck. Especially useful for preparing two stacked hands simultaneously.

Under the Gun -- The position of the first bettor.

Unlimited Poker -- Poker in which no limit is placed on bets or raises.

Up -- (1) The ace of anteing. (2) The higher of two pair -- e.g., queens and tens is queens up.

Up Cards -- The face-up cards in stud (Open Cards).

Up the Creek -- A game in which split-whiskered kings are wild.

Utah -- See Cincinnati.

- V -

V8 Ford Special -- Thirteen-card stud with five cards to each player and eight table cards in a V formation, with one side of the V played for high and the other side played for low.

Vigorish -- The amount taken by the house for running a game.

- W -

Wash -- To Shuffle.

Waving -- Coiling or crimping cards by a cheater so the wavy card can be spotted in an opponent's hand or in the deck.

Weary Willie -- See Elimination.

Wedges -- Certain tapered or shaved cards that can be pulled from a deck when needed by the cheater.

Welcher -- A player who fails to pay a debt.

Whangedoodle -- A round of jackpots played after a big hand such as four of a kind.

Wheel -- See Bicycle.

Whipsaw -- To bet and raise aggressively on both sides of a calling player. (Squeezed Player).

Whiskey Poker -- Draw poker with widow cards that can be exchanged from one's hand.

Whore -- A queen.

Widow -- (1) A card or cards common to all hands (Spit Card). (2) The money cut from pots (Kitty).

Wild Annie -- See Double-Barreled Shotgun.

Wild Card -- A card changeable to any value or suit desired by its holder.

Wild Game -- (1) A game using wild cards. (2) A highly spirited or fast-paced game.

Wild Widow -- A card turned up for use as a wild card (with all similar cards being wild) in every player's hand (Spit Card).

Window -- The card exposed or flashed at the end of a player's closed hand.

Window Dressing -- A card purposely flashed from one's closed hand.

Wing -- To have a winning streak.

Wired (Back-to-Back) -- A pair, trips, or four of a kind dealt consecutively or back-to-back in a hand ... usually in a stud hand starting with the first card.

Woolworth -- A game in which all fives and tens are wild.

World Series of Poker -- A Hold 'em tournament with a $10,000 buy-in held every May at Binion's Horseshoe Casino in Las Vegas.

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