Game Jargon: Know the jargon to get things done! Here’s the lingo of popular board games
Don’t be left out when playing at the casino! Learn gambling vocabulary as you learn the games. This is important to understand so that you don’t feel like a newbie when playing board games.
TWENTY ONE
Basic strategy – Plays you must make to maximize your advantage
Burn letters – Cards removed after the deck.
Bust / Break – Beating a total hand of 21
Card counting – Memorize cards played with an assigned value
Color – Collect your chips
Bend – To double your initial bet after the initial 2-card deal
Even money – Cashing your bet for a 1/1 payout when you have a blackjack against a dealer ace
Cards with figures – Jacks, Queens, Kings (aka picture cards)
First base – First seat to the dealer’s left
Hit / Draw – Asking for another card to add to your hand
Hole card – The dealer’s face down card
Sure – An additional bet for the player when the dealer shows an ace.
Pat Hand – A had a value of at least 17 points
Push / tie – Player and dealer with the same total hands
Shoe – A device used to store and dispense cards.
Soft hand A hand with an ace counted as 11 or 1
Stiff hand – A hand with little chance of winning if you get hit
Give up – Give you your hand to lose half your bet
Third base – Last seat to the dealer’s right
Card up – Dealer’s first card dealt face up
DICES
Any Craps – A total of dice of 2, 3 or 12
Great red – a bet on the Any seven box
Vans – When the dice add up to 12
Covered dice – Twisted dice
Cold Table – When most shooters aren’t winning
Come Bet – A bet placed after the point is established
Exit Roll – First roll of dice in a round
Don’t Come Bet – A bet placed after the point is established (the result is opposite of the Come bet)
Don’t pass the bet – Betting against the shooter before Exit roll
Free fees – An additional bet behind the Pass line bet taken in true odds
Jorge – A good tip
Hard way – A 4,6,8,10 thrown in pairs
Place bet Betting that a place number (4-6, 8-10) will be rolled before a 7
Point number – One of the numbers 4-6, 8-10 made on the exit roll.
Press A Bet – To double your bet amount
Betting proposal – (AKA Prop Bets) one roll and Hard way bets
Right Gambler – Betting the shooter will win
Seven out – When a 7 is rolled before the point number
Shooter – Player currently rolling the dice
Snake Eyes – When the dice add up to 2
Rigid – A poor dumper
Toke – An advice given to the dealer.
Vigorish – ( AKA Vig) commission taken by the house
Wrong gambler – Betting the shooter will lose
Me – The number 11 (aka Yo-Leven)
POKER (TEXAS HOLD’EM STYLE)
Aces up – A pair of aces with another pair
Everything inside – Betting all your remaining chips
In view of – The initial bet before the deal begins
Belly Buster – An interior staircase project
Big Slick – An ace and a king
Blinds – 2 forced bets before the cards are dealt (small blind and big blind)
Boat – Slang for a Full house
Broadway – The highest possible ladder with mixed suits, 10, J, Q, K, A
Button – A disc placed in front of a player acting as a dealer.
Bullets – A pair of aces
Call – To match the current bet
Check – Postpone placing a bet until another player does
Cowboys – Slang for a pair of kings
Dead hand – A hand with no chance of winning
Donkey / Fish – A bad player
Dead drawing – A hand that will lose even if it improves
Flop – The first 3 community cards
Flush – 5 cards of the same suit
Full house – (AKA Boat ) 3 of one type and 2 of another
Kicker – The highest unpaired card in a hand
Ladies – Slang for a pair of queens
Muck – Discarded hands upside down
Walnuts – Highest possible hand
Overcard – One card higher than another
ATVs 4 of a kind
Rag (s) – Cards that don’t add value to your hand
Rainbow – Cards with different suits
River – The fifth and last community card
Rounder – One who makes a living playing cards
Royal flush – Highest possible hand, a suited 10, J, Q, K, A
Set / Travel – 3 of a kind
Small pile – Have the least amount of chips on the table
Color ladder – 5 cards of the same suit in sequential order
He says – Behavior that gives other players information about how you might play your hand
Tight – Someone who only plays premium hands
Inclination – Desperate to hit losses again, causing bad decisions
Turn – The fourth community card
Under the gun – First player to bet after the big blind
Wheel – The lowest possible ladder with mixed suits A, 2, 3, 4,5
Wiring – A pair dealt on the first 2 cards
So there you have it. Learning this lingo will help you on your way to becoming a seasoned responsible gamer. Good luck!