A Short Glossary of Poker Terms

The game of poker has a language all its own. This language, although colorful and descriptive, sometimes can be difficult for people who want to learn to play poker. This poker overview contains definitions of some of the most common poker terms.

Ante – This is what’s called a forced bet. In an ante, players are required to bet before seeing any cards. This guarantees money in the pot for each poker hand.

Bluff – A poker strategy where a player bets as if he has a strong hand, when his hand is actually poor. The strategy of bluffing is make other players fold, even though you do not have a winning poker hand. Most poker stars are masters of bluffing.

Drawing Dead – Drawing to a hand that cannot win. . Flush Draw – Drawing to complete a flush.

Inside Straight – A poker hand in which you have 4 cards that will make a straight but are missing a fifth one in the middle.

Kicker – The highest unpaired card in a poker hand. The kicker is used as a tide-breaker.

Limit Poker – A poker game with fixed bets. For example, all bets and raises in the first two rounds of $2-4 limit game are $2. Bets and raises in following rounds are $4.

Mechanic – A player who cheats by manipulating or arranging the deck to benefit himself while dealing.

Open-Ended – A poker hand that has for cards numbered consecutively. The player completes a straight by drawing a fifth card that completes the straight at either end.

Push – When a player pushes, he bets his entire stack of chips on the current hand.

Semi-bluff – If a player has a weak hand that might become very strong, he may elect to semi-bluff in the hope that the others players will fold. But even if they don’t fold, he still can win the hand with a successful draw. Professional poker players in online poker tournaments make extensive use of the semi-bluff as well as of their knowledge of what beats what in poker, as poker statistics show.

In conclusion, if you want to learn poker and learn to play it well, an in-depth familiarity with poker’s specialized language is essential and indispensible.