Poker glossary - common terms and slang

Poker glossary with cards, chips, and common poker slang

This poker glossary explains the poker terms, phrases, and table slang you will hear in Texas hold'em, live cash games, online poker, and tournaments. Start with the quick list below, then use the A-Z glossary when a word comes up at the table.

If you are still learning the rules, keep this page open beside our poker hand rankings chart and our beginner poker strategy guide. The words make a lot more sense once you can connect them to real hands.

Essential poker terms for beginners

These are the terms to learn before you play your first live game or online session.

Term	What it means
Ante	A small forced bet paid by every player before a hand starts, usually in tournaments or stud games.
Big blind	The larger forced bet posted before the cards are dealt.
Small blind	The smaller forced bet posted by the player to the left of the dealer button.
Button	The dealer position. It moves one seat left after each hand and acts last after the flop.
Call	Match the current bet.
Check	Pass the action without betting when no bet is facing you.
Raise	Increase the current bet.
Fold	Give up your hand and stop playing the pot.
Flop	The first three community cards in Texas hold'em and Omaha.
Turn	The fourth community card.
River	The fifth and final community card.
Pot	The chips or money in the middle that the winner can claim.
All-in	Put your whole remaining stack into the pot.
Kicker	A side card that breaks ties when players have the same main hand.
Position	Where you sit relative to the button. Later position gives you more information.

Common poker slang at the table

Poker slang is less formal than the rulebook language. Players use it to describe hands, opponents, lucky cards, bad calls, and emotional mistakes.

Slang	Meaning
Air	A hand with no made value, often used when a player is bluffing.
Bad beat	A strong hand losing after being a clear favorite.
Blank	A card that appears not to change much.
Boat	A full house.
Brick	A card that misses the obvious draws.
Broadway	An ace-high straight, 10-J-Q-K-A. Broadway cards can also mean 10 through ace.
Bullets	Pocket aces.
Cooler	A hand where two strong holdings clash and losing is hard to avoid.
Cowboys	Pocket kings.
Dead money	Chips in the pot from players who are unlikely to continue well, or money added by players no longer in the hand.
Deuce	A two.
Donk bet	A bet into the previous street's aggressor, usually out of position.
Fish	A weak or inexperienced player. It is common slang, but it is still rude at the table.
Gutshot	An inside straight draw with one rank needed to complete the straight.
Hero call	A call with a weak bluff-catcher because you think the opponent is bluffing.
Jam	Move all-in.
Nit	A very tight player who enters few pots.
Nuts	The best possible hand at that moment.
Quads	Four of a kind.
Rock	A very tight and passive player.
Shark	A strong, winning player.
Shove	Move all-in.
Slowroll	Delay showing or calling with a hand you know is very likely to win. It is bad etiquette.
Tell	A physical or betting clue that may reveal hand strength.
Tilt	Emotional play after frustration, fatigue, or a big loss.
Whale	A wealthy player who plays too many weak hands.
Wheel	The ace-to-five straight, A-2-3-4-5.

Betting and action terms

Most poker phrases make sense once you know who bet, who called, and where the action started. For deeper rule references, compare this guide with the Poker.org rules guide and the game descriptions at Pagat.

Barrel: Bet again on a later street after betting the previous street. A double barrel means betting two streets. A triple barrel means betting all three postflop streets.
Check-raise: Check first, then raise after another player bets.
Cold call: Call a raise when you have not already put money into the pot on that betting round.
C-bet: Short for continuation bet. It is a flop bet by the player who raised before the flop.
Limp: Enter the pot by calling the big blind instead of raising.
Open: Make the first voluntary raise before the flop.
Overbet: Bet more than the size of the pot.
Straddle: A voluntary blind raise posted before the cards are dealt, usually in live cash games.
Value bet: Bet because you expect worse hands to call.
Bluff: Bet or raise with a weak hand to make better hands fold.

Hand and board terms

These words describe the cards you hold, the board texture, and the way a hand improves. If the hand names are still confusing, read the Poker Stack hand rankings guide first.

Backdoor draw: A draw that needs both the turn and river to help.
Blocker: A card in your hand that makes it less likely an opponent has a certain hand.
Counterfeit: A board card that weakens your made hand by making the board play for more opponents.
Draw: A hand that needs future cards to become strong, such as a flush draw or straight draw.
Dry board: A board with few obvious straight or flush draws.
Flush draw: Four cards to a flush with one card still needed.
Inside straight draw: A straight draw that needs one specific middle card. This is also called a gutshot.
Overcard: A card higher than the board or higher than a player's pair.
Overpair: A pocket pair higher than every card on the board.
Runner-runner: A hand made by catching helpful cards on both the turn and river.
Set: Three of a kind made with a pocket pair and one matching board card.
Trips: Three of a kind usually made with one card in your hand and a paired board.
Wet board: A board with many straight or flush draws.

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Position and tournament terms

Position changes how you play a hand. Tournament language adds another layer because blinds rise, stacks shrink, and payouts matter. The PokerNews poker rules are a useful reference for live tournament procedures, even when local house rules differ.

Under the gun: The first player to act before the flop.
Hijack: The seat two places to the right of the button.
Cutoff: The seat directly to the right of the button.
Button: The dealer position and the best position after the flop.
Bubble: The final unpaid finishing place before the prize money starts.
ICM: Independent Chip Model. It estimates the money value of a tournament stack.
Short stack: A stack with few big blinds left.
Deep stack: A stack with many big blinds, which leaves more room to play postflop.
Re-entry: A tournament format where busted players can buy in again during a set period.
Satellite: A tournament where prizes are seats into a bigger event.

If you play tournaments often, pair this glossary with our guide to online poker tournament strategy. The terms matter more when stack size and payout pressure change your decisions.

Player types and table talk

Some table words are useful, but a few are insults. It is better to understand them than to throw them around. If you want to read people without turning every habit into a story, see our guide to live and online poker tells.

Calling station: A player who calls too often and rarely raises.
Maniac: A player who bets and raises too much.
Nit: A player who is too tight and waits for premium hands.
Regular: A player who appears often in the same game or pool.
Recreational player: A player who plays mainly for fun.
Table image: How other players think you are playing.
Tell: A clue from timing, posture, bet sizing, or speech.
Tilt: Emotional decision-making that usually costs money.

A-Z poker glossary

Use this section as a quick poker dictionary when you hear a word you do not know. For more examples, the public glossaries from Poker.org, PokerNews, Upswing Poker, and Wikipedia's glossary of poker terms are also useful.

A: Ace in the hole, action, all-in, ante.

B: Backdoor, bad beat, bankroll, barrel, big blind, big slick, blank, blocker, bluff, boat, brick, broadway, bubble, button.

C: Call, calling station, case card, c-bet, check, check-raise, cold call, community cards, cooler, cutoff.

D: Dark bet, dead money, deuce, donk bet, draw, drawing dead, dry board.

E: Early position, equity, expected value.

F: Family pot, fifth street, fish, float, flop, flush draw, fold, free card.

G: Grinder, gutshot.

H: Heads up, hero call, hijack, hit, hole cards.

I: ICM, implied odds, inside straight draw, isolation raise.

J: Jam.

K: Kicker.

L: Ladies, late position, laydown, limp.

M: Maniac, misclick, monster, muck.

N: Nit, no-limit, nosebleed, nuts.

O: Offsuit, one-gapper, open, out, overbet, overcard, overpair.

P: Pocket pair, pocket rockets, position, pot, pot committed, preflop.

Q: Quads.

R: Rabbit hunt, rainbow, raise, rake, range, river, rock, runner-runner.

S: Satellite, scare card, set, shove, showdown, slowplay, slowroll, small blind, straddle, street.

T: Table image, tell, three-bet, tilt, trap, trey, trips, turn.

U: Under the gun, underdog, underpair, upswing.

V: Value bet, variance, VPIP.

W: Wet board, whale, wheel.

How to use this glossary while you play

Do not try to memorize every phrase at once. Learn the rule terms first, then the betting terms, then the slang. After each session, write down any words you heard and check them later. Poker Stack can help with the same habit for results, notes, and bankroll decisions, especially if you are trying to stop guessing where your money goes. You can start from the Poker Stack homepage or read our guide to poker bankroll management.

Poker glossary FAQ

What are the most common poker terms for beginners?

The most common poker terms for beginners are blinds, button, call, check, raise, fold, flop, turn, river, pot, all-in, kicker, position, nuts, and tilt.

What is poker slang?

Poker slang is the informal language players use at the table. It includes nicknames for hands, player types, betting actions, positions, and common situations.

What does all-in mean in poker?

All-in means a player has put every chip in their stack into the pot. They cannot bet more in that hand, but they can still win the pot or a side pot.

What does tilt mean in poker?

Tilt means a player is making poor decisions because they are frustrated, angry, tired, or chasing losses.

What is the difference between poker terms and poker slang?

Poker terms are the formal words used to explain the rules, such as blinds, flop, and raise. Poker slang is more informal, such as fish, cooler, brick, or pocket rockets.

Poker glossary: common terms and slang explained