Poker Glossary
Plain-English definitions of the poker words you will hear at the table, from all-in and blinds to outs, pot odds and VPIP.
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3-bet
The first re-raise before the flop. The big blind counts as the first bet and the first raise is the second, so a re-raise is the third bet. A re-raise of a 3-bet is a 4-bet.
A
Action
Whose turn it is to act, or the betting itself (“the action is on you”).
All-in
Betting every chip you have left. You can only win as much from each opponent as you put in; any extra goes into a side pot.
Ante
A small forced bet every player puts in before a hand, used in some tournaments on top of the blinds.
B
Big blind (BB)
The larger of the two forced bets, posted by the player two seats left of the dealer button. Stack sizes and bets are often measured in big blinds, e.g. “a 40 BB stack”.
Blinds
The two forced bets (small blind and big blind) that start the betting in every hand, so there is always something to play for. In tournaments they rise on a schedule.
Bluff
A bet or raise with a weak hand, hoping a better hand folds.
Board
The five community cards dealt face up in the middle of the table: the flop, turn and river.
Button
The dealer position, marked with a “D” disc. It acts last after the flop, which makes it the best seat at the table. It moves one seat to the left every hand.
Buy-in
The chips you start with when you sit down at a cash game, or the starting stack in a tournament.
C
Call
Matching the current bet to stay in the hand.
Cash game
A game where players can join, top up and leave at any time and the blinds stay the same. Also called a ring game. Compare with a tournament.
Check
Passing the action without betting, allowed only when nobody has bet in the current round.
Check-raise
Checking, then raising after an opponent bets in the same round.
Community cards
The cards dealt face up that every player can use. See board.
Continuation bet (c-bet)
A bet on the flop by the player who made the last raise before the flop.
Cutoff (CO)
The seat directly to the right of the button, the second-best position at the table.
D
Draw
A hand that is not made yet but could become strong, such as four cards to a flush.
E
Effective stack
The smaller of two players' stacks: the most either can win or lose against the other in a hand.
Equity
Your share of the pot based on how often your hand will win (plus your share of ties) if all the cards are dealt. 60% equity in a 100-chip pot is worth 60 chips on average. Try the equity calculator.
Expected value (EV)
The average amount a decision wins or loses if it were repeated many times. A “+EV” call makes chips in the long run.
F
Flop
The first three community cards, dealt together after the first round of betting.
Flush draw
Four cards of the same suit, needing one more to make a flush. It has 9 outs.
Fold
Giving up your hand and any chips you have already put in the pot.
G
Gutshot
A straight draw that needs one specific inside rank, such as 9-8-6-5 needing a 7. It has 4 outs.
H
Heads-up
Playing against just one opponent, either because only two players are at the table or because everyone else folded.
Hole cards
Your two private cards, dealt face down.
I
Implied odds
Chips you expect to win on later streets if you hit your draw, which can make a call worth it even when the pot odds alone are not enough.
K
Kicker
A card that is not part of your pair, trips or quads but still counts in your five-card hand. It breaks ties between equal pairs. See how ties are broken.
L
Limp
Calling the big blind before the flop instead of raising.
M
Min-raise
The smallest legal raise: the current bet plus the size of the last bet or raise in that round.
Muck
To throw your cards away face down without showing them.
N
Nuts
The best possible hand given the cards on the board.
O
Open-ended straight draw
Four cards in a row that can be completed at either end, such as 9-8-7-6 needing a 10 or a 5. It has 8 outs.
Outs
The unseen cards that would improve your hand to the likely winner. A flush draw has 9 outs.
Overpair
A pocket pair higher than every card on the board, such as Q-Q on a J-7-3 flop.
P
Pocket pair
Two hole cards of the same rank, such as 8-8.
Position
Where you sit relative to the button. Being “in position” means acting after your opponent, which gives you more information.
Pot
All the chips bet so far in the current hand.
Pot odds
The price of a call compared with the pot. Calling 50 into a pot of 150 (including the bet) gives 3-to-1 pot odds, so you need to win at least 25% of the time. Try the pot odds calculator.
Preflop
The first betting round, after hole cards are dealt and before the flop.
R
Raise
Increasing the current bet, which other players must match to stay in.
River
The fifth and final community card, followed by the last betting round.
S
Set
Three of a kind made with a pocket pair plus one matching board card. With one hole card and a pair on the board it is called trips.
Showdown
When the remaining players reveal their cards after the final betting round to see who wins.
Side pot
A separate pot for chips that an all-in player cannot match. Only players who put chips into it can win it.
Small blind (SB)
The smaller forced bet, usually half the big blind, posted by the player directly left of the button.
Stack
The chips a player has in front of them.
Suited connectors
Two consecutive cards of the same suit, such as 8-7 of hearts. They can make straights and flushes.
T
Tilt
Playing worse than usual because of frustration, often after a bad beat.
Time bank
Extra thinking time a player can add to a decision, used a limited number of times per game.
Tournament
A game where everyone starts with the same stack, the blinds rise on a schedule and players are eliminated until one has all the chips.
Trips
Three of a kind made with one hole card plus a pair on the board.
Turn
The fourth community card, followed by the third betting round.
U
Under the gun (UTG)
The first player to act before the flop, sitting directly left of the big blind.
V
Value bet
A bet with a strong hand that you want worse hands to call.
VPIP
“Voluntarily put money in pot”: the share of hands where a player calls or raises before the flop (posting a blind does not count). Plus2Poker's hand history export calculates it for every player.