Poker has developed its own language over the years; this guide includes not only common poker terms, but also some specifically related to online poker.

Add-on

Some tournaments allow you to buy extra chips after a certain amount of time. The purchase of the extra chips is called an add-on. Add-on tournaments typically only allow you to buy one 'add-on' once after one hour of play, usually during the first break. An add-on is available in many re-buy tournaments.

Added Cash

In some tournaments NutsPoker.com will add extra cash to the prize pool in addition to the buy-ins.

All-in

If you bet all your chips at any point, you are considered as having gone "all-in." This can happen either when you don't have enough chips to make a required bet, or when you bet all your chips as a strategic move in no-limit games. Going all-in gives you the potential to win a share of the pot up to and including your last contribution to that pot. You cannot share in any bets added above and beyond that point; these bets form a side-pot.

Avatar

A term from computer gaming for an image or figure used to represent a person at an online poker table.

Away (or Away-from-table)

When you are in a tournament and need to leave, or you time-out, or lose your connection, you are automatically marked as "away", which means you are dealt into every hand, posting blinds when it's your turn, and then folded when there is a raise before the flop, or a bet after the flop.

Bad Beat

This term refers to a heavy favourite in a hand who loses to an opponent who was a severe underdog, statistically speaking.

Bet The Pot

This term is used in pot-limit games. It means your bet matches the current amount in the pot. For example: if, when it's your turn to bet, the pot was at $217, and you bet the pot, your bet is therefore $217.

Blinds

Forced bets paid to make sure that there is some action on every hand of poker. The blinds are mandatory bets and rotate around the table.

Blinds Increase

A change in the amount of blinds paid. A blinds increase can occur after a predetermined amount of time or hands. Blinds increase according to a predetermined pattern.

Blind Levels

During a tournament the blinds will increase incrementally to ensure that the tournament ends up with a winner.

Board

The community cards in Hold'em are collectively known as the board.

Burn

In physical poker rooms, the top card of the deck is discarded prior to each round of dealing. The intent is to minimize the risk of cheating by knowing the next card. As there is no possibility of this happening in online poker, no cards are burned.

Button

A marker, usually disk-shaped, to indicate which player is the virtual dealer. The button is used in games where position relative to the dealer is important.

Buy-in

The amount of money required to sit down at a poker game. Tournament entry fees are considered the "buy-in." At a ring game, there is a minimum and a maximum buy-in, defining how much money you can bring to the table.

Call

When a player matches the previous bet on the table, that action is termed a call.

Cap

The last permitted raise in a betting round is called the cap.

Check

If there is not yet a bet on the table and you also do not wish to place a bet, this action is termed a check. You may only check when there have been no prior bets in the current betting round.

Client

The term for the software that you download to your computer, allowing you to interact with the poker room's servers.

Cold Call

When a player calls a raise and a re-raise when he has no money invested in the pot.

Collusion

A form of cheating where two or more players attempt to gain an unfair advantage by sharing information. This is not tolerated and players who collude will be banned.

Community Cards

Face-up cards on the table which are shared by all players are termed community cards. Texas Hold'em and Omaha games always use community cards.

Crying Call

A frustrated call in a situation where you are sure you are probably beat.

Cut-off

The position immediately before the dealer button.

Dead Blind

In a cash-game situation where you have missed your blinds and wish to enter the game before it is your turn to post the big blind, you must post both blinds and the small blind is termed a dead blind, meaning it does not count towards calling a bet.

Dead Hand

A hand no longer in the game.

Double-up

To double your stack in a single hand, usually as a result of an all-in bet.

Down Cards

The face-down cards dealt to a player, also termed hole or pocket cards.

Drawing Dead

This describes the situation when a player is trying to draw a card to complete a hand when there is already a hand which will beat it, even if made.

Drop

See Fold.

Face-down

Dealt cards which are not visible to other players.

Face-up

Dealt cards which are visible to all players.

Flat Prize Structure

A tournament with a flat payout structure awards prizes from the prize pool on a percentage basis to approximately the top 12.5% of entrants.

Flop

In Texas Hold'em, the set of three face-up community cards, which are all dealt at the same time.

Flush

Any five cards in one hand which are all of the same suit.

Fold

Withdraw from further participation in the current hand. Also known as drop.

Fold equity

The extra value a bettor receives from the chance that an opponent or opponents will fold to his bet.

Forced Bet

A mandatory bet. In certain games a player is required to bet before receiving any cards.

Four of a Kind

A great hand! Four cards of the same rank, for example four aces.

Freeroll

This is a tournament with a prize pool but no buy-in, i.e. it's free to enter. Freerolls are a great way for beginners to experience multi-table tournament action without having to pay a buy-in. In most cases freeroll winnings can only be released after collecting sufficient Nuts Points.

Freezeout

If you lose all your chips in a freezeout tournament you have no way of getting back into the tournament. There are no re-buys or add-ons available in a freezeout tournament.

Full House

A hand in which you have a combination of three of a kind, and a pair; for example, three tens and two sevens.

Full Table

A full table refers to a game in which ten players sit at a table. Compare with short-handed and heads-up.

Graphics

The term for the artwork used to present you with the images of a poker room, including the table, chairs, avatars, cards, and chips.

Gutshot Draw

See Inside Straight Draw

Hand

A set of cards used by a player during a single round. The term is also used to refer to a single round of shuffling, dealing, and betting.

Heads-up

A game where only two players remain in contention for the pot.

Head To Head

A game where only two players participate.

High Card

The card with the highest rank.

High/Low

A variation of a game where the pot is split between the best hand and the worst hand. The worst hand is comprised of the five lowest cards.

Hold'em

Also called Texas Hold'em, this has become the most popular variation of poker. Each player receives two down-cards and can combine any or none of these with the community cards on the table to form a hand.

Hole Cards

See Down-cards.

House fee

Most tournaments charge a fee for hosting the event; the amount taken as a fee is always clearly shown in the buy-in. A $5+$0.50 tournament includes a $0.50 house fee, for example. The house fee is often also called the rake.

In

A term for being an active player in a hand; one who has not folded.

Inside Straight Draw

The term applied when a player has four of five cards needed for a straight, with the missing card being in the middle of the sequence rather than at either end. This is also often referred to as a gutshot draw.

Jackpot

A bonus opportunity to win an extra prize in specific circumstances.

Kicker

The term for the card used to break ties between two hands which are otherwise equal. For example, if two players each have the same two pair, the next highest card in each player's hand is the kicker.

Leak

A small, frequent mistake which saps profit from your game.

Live Blind

A forced bet put in by one or more players before any cards are dealt. The "live" means those players still have the option of raising when the action gets back around to them.

Main Pot

The initial pot of money. When one or more players go all-in, a side pot is created for each all-in player.

Muck

As a noun, this refers to the pile of folded and discarded cards. As a verb, at showdown time, the act of returning a losing hand to the dealer face-down.

Multi-Table Tournament (MTT)

A tournament where players at more than one table compete, starting with equal numbers of chips, until one player has won all the chips. Prize payouts are a function of the number of entrants, and are posted on the tournaments page. Multi-table tournaments have a posted start time, and require registration in advance.

NH

Chat abbreviation for "Nice hand".

Nickname

See Screen Name

No-limit (NL)

A variation of the betting rules in which each bet is unlimited up to the number of chips a player has on the table (NL).

Nuts

An unbeatable hand in a given situation.

Nuts Points

Nuts Points are player loyalty points you automatically accumulate as you play for real money at cash tables and in tournaments. They can be used in various ways, such as converting them to real money, exchanging them for tournament tokens, prizes, or merchandising, or using to release deposit bonuses and freeroll prizes. (See the Nuts Points and VIP Nuts sections in the Nutshouse for more detailed information.

Omaha

A game in which players receive four face-down cards each and share five community cards. The winning hand must use a combination of exactly two down-cards and three community cards. This game also has a high/low variant.

Omaha High/Low

This game allows players to compete for a pot split between the highest and the lowest hands using a combination of exactly two down-cards and three community cards. A player may use different sets of cards to form the best high and the best low hands.

On The Button

This term means you are in the dealer position. A "button" marks the dealer position with a "D" in the center.

One On One

See Head To Head.

Pair

Two cards of the same rank, for example two nines.

Pass

Can be used in place of either check or fold depending on the context.

Play Chips

The chips used for play money games. Play chips have no monetary value.

Play Money Cash Game/Tournament

Play money games are designed to give players a feel for how real money tournaments are played, giving them a chance to practice before playing with real money. (Gameplay tends to be vastly different in play money games, because nothing is at stake).

Play the board

In community card games such as Hold'em to use the five face-up cards on the table as your best hand, using none of your hole cards.

Pocket Cards

See Down-cards.

Pot

The chips in the middle of the table, which can be won in any given hand.

Pot-limit (PL)

A betting variation whereby each player may bet any amount up to the current amount in the pot.

Premium hands

The best (most profitable) starting hands. (See the "20 Best Starting Hands" section in the Nuts Poker Academy).

Private Tournament

You can set up a tournament at Nutspoker.com by yourself, exactly how you want it, just for you and your friends. Only players with a password are allowed to play in a private tournament. Private tournaments are displayed in the Private section of the Tournament Lobby.

Prize Pool

The prize pool in a tournament consists of the buy-ins (minus the house fee) for all players plus any money which may have been added by the house.

Qualifier

Qualifier tournaments (also known as satellites), unlike normal tournaments, do not award cash prizes to the winners, but rather tickets to other, higher buy-in tournaments. The number of tickets awarded in any given qualifier is determined by dividing the amassed prize pool by the value of the awarded ticket; if any cash remains afterwards it is paid out to the next-placed player(s) who did not win a ticket.

Raise

The act of increasing the amount bet by a prior bettor.

Rake

See House Fee.

Raked Hand

A raked hand is any hand which generates rake in a real-money cash-game. Some games with raked hand requirements refer to raked hands where a player has actively contributed to the pot.

Rank

The value of a card. Rank value increases from 2 through 10, followed in order by Jack, Queen, King, and Ace. In High/Low games, the Ace may be used both for its high rank and as the lowest rank card.

Rebuy

Any tournament in which players are allowed to buy back into the tournament if they have lost all of their chips. The cost of the re-buy is equal to the buy-in minus the house fee. Often re-buys are only available during the first hour of a tournament; typically a re-buy tournament either allows only one re-buy during the first hour or unlimited re-buys during the first hour. The funds used to re-buy are added to the prize pool.

Reducing

The act of removing chips from a table and returning immediately with fewer chips. Reducing is considered poor etiquette.

Registration

To play in any tournament you must first register for it. Registration for a scheduled tournament is typically available several hours before its scheduled start time, but check the details of the tournament in the lobby to be sure. When you register your buy-in is held to reserve you a seat.

Regular

Refers to a scheduled tournament which is not a qualifier or a restricted tournament.

Restricted

A restricted tournament is a scheduled tournament which is only open to a pre-defined group of players.

River

The fifth and final community card. This card is also known as fifth street.

Round

This refers to the dealing of a set of cards and associated betting. For example, the dealing of the river card and the bets which follow constitute a round.

Royal Flush

The best possible hand in poker. This is a straight flush from 10 through to Ace of the same suit; don't hold your breath, you won't see too many of them...

Satellite

A tournament which offers as a prize an entry into a more expensive tournament. (Also called "qualifier").

See

Same as "call".

Scheduled

Any tournament which has a predetermined start time.

Scoop

To win the entire pot in a high-low game.

Screen Name

The identity you select by which you are known in the poker room and which is displayed at the tables. Screen names are unique and cannot be changed; if another player has already registered a particular screen name you will have to choose a different one.

Self-install

The term used to describe how the file you download from our website is automatically installed and configured on your computer when you double-click on the file.

Server

The computer, or set of computers, providing a service to client computers. In this case the service is the poker room.

Short-handed

This refers to a game in which less than ten players sit at a table. Usually in a short-handed game the tables seat six players.

Showdown

After the final bet all players remaining in the hand reveal their cards or muck; this is known as the showdown.

Side Pot

This is a pot created when a player goes all-in. The side pot is the pot available to those players not all-in at that point. There can, on occasion, be more than one side pot.

Single Table Tournament (STT)

A tournament with a maximum of ten players, all at the same table. Single table tournaments begin as soon as the table has filled. Also known as a Sit & Go.

Sit & Go

Any tournament which starts as soon as a predetermined number of players have paid their buy-in.

Sit Out

This function allows you to hold your seat at a table while not participating in some hands. Generally there is a limit on the time you may sit out. You may be obliged to post the equivalent of the blind if you return to your seat prior to the blind reaching you. To sit out you click a check box on the table screen. To return, you click the "I'm back" box.

Small Blind

In Hold'em and Omaha, this is the mandatory bet required of the player to the left of the dealer.

Stakes

In limit games, stakes are the fixed amounts set for bets and raises.

Starting Stack

This is the amount of chips which each player begins a tournament with. A typical starting stack is 1500 chips.

Stealing the blinds

Making a pre-flop raise, usually in late position, with the sole intention of trying to win the blinds uncontested, without having to see a flop.

Straight

A hand in which the player has five cards in order of rank; suit does not matter. For example: 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen.

Straight Flush

The same as a straight, but with all the cards being of the same suit.

Stud

The generic term for poker games where players receive the first card(s) face-down followed by some face-up cards, where those up cards are exclusively for the use of that player. There may be a further down card later in the game, such as in 7 Card Stud.

Suit

There are four suits in a deck of poker cards: hearts, spades, diamonds and clubs. Five cards of the same suit constitute a flush.

Texas Hold'em

A variation of poker in which each player gets two down-cards, followed by up to five community cards face-up on the table.

Three Of A Kind

A hand consisting of three cards of the same rank, for example three sevens.

Ticket

A tournament ticket will get you into a tournament without the need for a cash buy-in. Tournament tickets are sometimes awarded as parts of promotions or as prizes in qualifier tournaments. Also known as a token.

Token

See Ticket.

Tournament Buy-In

The cost to enter a tournament. All buy-in money is returned to the players via the prize pool.

Tournament Entry-Fee

A small fee the house charges to enter a tournament.

Tournament Lobby

This is the section in the poker software where you can find all of the tournaments currently available and running.

Trips

A nickname for three of a kind.

Turbo

This is any tournament in which the blinds increase more rapidly than normal. Typically the blinds will increase every 3 minutes in a Turbo tournament.

Turn

The nickname for the fourth community card in Hold'em and Omaha.

Two Pair

A hand in which the player has two pairs of cards, e.g. two tens and two fives.

Under-raise

This occurs when a player wishes to raise a previous bet, but has to go all-in to do so with an amount less than the normal raise.

Up-card

A card dealt face-up, so that all players may see it.

Wheel

A nickname for the best low hand, or a particular straight: 5, 4, 3, 2, ace.