Poker players really do have their own language - it is part of what makes the game so special. Here's a handy guide to some of the most common poker lingo.

A-B | C-D | E-F | G-K | L-N | O-P | R-S | T-W

A

Action - A term for betting & raising. An action table involves players playing in several pots.

Active player - Any player still in the hand.

Aggressive - An aggressive player raises and re-raises a lot of pots and can be very dangerous. Watch out for them, or even become one!

Ajax - The term for holding an Ace and a Jack as pocket cards. Nothing to do with Dutch football teams of ancient Greek strongmen.

All-in - When a player puts all of their chips into the pot. If the player cannot call the bet by going all-in, then a side pot is created.

American Airlines - Pocket Aces.

Ante - The ante is the minimum stake required from players to join into a hand.

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B

Backdoor - Making a hand unexpectedly. For example, holding a 6 and an 8 suited (seeking a flush draw), and flopping 4, 5, 7 unsuited to make a backdoor straight.

Bad beat - A very strong hand which is beaten by a stronger hand, most often by lucky cards on the turn and river.

Bankroll - The amount of cash you have to play with.

Belly buster - Another term for an inside straight.

Bet - To put money into the pot.

Big slick - Having an Ace and a King as hole cards.

Blank - A low card which doesn't aid your hand. Here's hoping you don't draw a blank.

Blind - A starting bet in poker. This is to induce betting upon players, and effectively start the betting off.

Bluff - A bet/raise when a player has a weak hand, pretending that they have a strong one. Can you call your opponent's bluff?

Board - The community cards available to all of the players to use.

Boat - A full house (3 of a kind and 2 of a kind).

Bounty - Occasionally top players who compete in tournaments have a bounty on their head, meaning that a player who manages to knock them out wins a bonus prize.

Broadway - A straight with an Ace high - 10-J-Q-K-A

Bubble - Finishing in the last position in a tournament before the money. If the pot pays to 15 players the bubble will finish in 16th position.

Bullets - Pocket Aces.

Bump - To raise the pot.

Button - The dealer button.

Buy-in - The amount of cash a player needs to sit down at a particular game.

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C

Call - To match a bet.

Calling station - A player that calls frequently.

Check - To check is to opt not to bet, but to remain in the pot, providing there has been no action in front of the player concerned.

Check-raise - A classic Holdem move. A player checks initially to induce his opponent to bet, and then raises him.

Coffeehousing - To chat about a hand which one is involved in, with the intention of misleading others about the state of play.

Connector - Connector cards are cards of consecutive rank which hold good straight potential.

Cowboys - Pocket Kings.

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D

Dead man's hand - Two pairs of Aces and Eights. Legend states that Wild Bill Hickok was shot dead with these cards in his hand.

Disconnect all-in - The disconnect all-in feature is in place to provide fairness in the event that a player becomes disconnected.

Dolly Parton - Hole cards of 9 and 5, named after the Queen of Country's classic film and song 'Nine to Five'.

Doyle Brunson - Hole cards of 10 and 2, made famous by poker legend Doyle Brunson, who won the World Series Of Poker twice with these cards.

Ducks - A pair of 2's

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F

Fifth Street - The river card, or 5th community card on the board.

Fish - An inexperienced/unskilled player.

Fishooks - Pocket Jacks.

Flat call - To call a hand without raising it.

Flop - The first three community cards dealt in Holdem.

Flush - Five cards of the same suit.

Fold - To throw away a hand, taking no further part in the pot.

Forced bet - A required bet to start a poker hand.

Fourth Street - The turn card, or 4th community card.

Free card - When a player is able to see a free card, players in front of him have checked, so he doesn't need to put in any more cash to the pot to see the next card.

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G

Grinder - A player who plays extremely tight and doesn't take many risks.

Gut shot - To draw or hit an inside straight.

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H

Heads-up - One on one play.

Hole - Hole cards are the first 2 cards dealt to players prior to the first round of betting.

Heads-up - One on one play.

Hole - Hole cards are the first 2 cards dealt to players prior to the first round of betting.

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I

Inside Straight - Four connected cards needing a card either end, catching that card and making an inside straight.

K

Kicker - The highest unpaired card in your hand that does not count in a flush or straight. E.g. if one player has an Ace and a 10, and another player holds Ace/9, the first player will win the pot by virtue of having a higher kicker.

Kitty - The pot in the middle of the table or prize fund for the hand.

Knock - To check.

Kojak - Hole cards of King & Jack.

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L

Ladies - Hole cards of 2 Queens.

Lay down - To lay down a hand is to fold.

Limp in - To enter a pot by calling as opposed to raising.

Lock - An unbeatable hand, also known as the nuts.

Loose - A loose player participates in a lot of hands.

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M

Maverick - A term for holding Jack and Queen hole cards.

Middle pair - Pairing the middle ranked card on the flop with one of your hole cards you would have middle pair.

Monster - A very big hand.

Muck - To fold or throw away your hand.

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N

Nuts - Holding the nuts means holding an invincible hand, given the cards which are on the board. Also known as the Lock.

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O

Offsuit - Two cards of different suit.

On the button - The player on the button is last to bet into the pot, and is technically in the strongest position.

Open-ended straight - Where a player has four consecutive cards, needing one card to complete the straight.

Outs - The number of cards in a deck which could improve a player's hand.

Over pair - A pocket pair which is higher than any of the cards on the board.

Quads - Four of a kind.

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R

Rag - A rag card is a worthless card which cannot improve your hand.

Railbird - Someone who watches and comments on a game from the chat facility.

Raise - To call a bet and add more into the pot.

Rake - The small percentage of money taken from the pot by the house. A rake schedule is available here .

Read - To read a player is to determine whether they are bluffing or not, by assessing their style of play.

Ring game - A live game that is not part of a tourney.

River - The fifth community card on the board.

Rock - A very tight player who sees little action and plays conservatively.

Royal flush - The best hand in poker, 10, J, Q, K, A all of the same suit.

Rush - A winning streak. Everybody wants to feel the rush.

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S

Sandbag - Sandbagging refers to playing a strong hand weakly at first, with the intention of forcing others to bet into the pot. Sneaky.

Scare card - A card which when it appears on the board makes a better hand more likely. This can be a good chance to bluff!

Set - Making three of a kind after having a pair as hole cards. E.g. being dealt two 10's, and seeing a flop of 10, 5, and 2.

Snowmen - A pair of 8's.

Stack - The amount of chips in front of a player.

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T

Tell - A giveaway by a player as to what kind of hand they have.

Tilt - To go 'on tilt' means to start playing erratically after a few bad beats.

Trips - 3 of a kind.

Turn - The fourth community card (also known as fourth street).

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U

Under the gun - The first player to bet/act. To raise UTG implies that you have a very strong hand.

Underpair - A pocket pair of lower value than the lowest card on the table.

Under the gun - The first player to bet/act. To raise UTG implies that you have a very strong hand.

Underpair - A pocket pair of lower value than the lowest card on the table.

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W

WSOP - The most famous poker tournament of them all, The World Series of Poker.

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