Poker Jargon Decoded: 20 basic Terms new players may want to know
Poker is more than just a game of cards; it’s a world of its own, complete with its own unique language. If you’ve ever felt out of place because someone threw out a term like “gutshot” or “check-raise” and you had no clue what it meant, don’t worry—you’re not alone. Learning the jargon isn’t just for show; it can give you a clearer understanding of the game and help you make better decisions.
If you are completely new to the game, you're in the right place! Let's go ahead and decode 20 commonly used poker terms so you can play with confidence, sound like a pro, and never feel embarrassed at the table again.
1. Gutshot
A gutshot straight draw means you need b It’s called a “gutshot” because you're looking for the card that's in the "guts" of the straight. And also because there is a very small odd of hitting it, so if you do it's like... you felt it in your guts it was going to happen!- Example: You have 8-9 on a board of J-10-3. You need a 7 to complete your straight.
2. Backdoor Draw
A backdoor draw happens when you need two consecutive cards (on the turn and river) to complete a flush or straight. Since you need both the final two cards for your hand to be complete, it's like it... went through the backdoor.- Example: Holding A♣ 4♣ on a K♣ Q♠ 5♦ board, you’ll need two more clubs to hit your flush.
3. Muck
To muck means folding your cards without showing them or discarding them after a hand is won. It’s a way to conceal your playstyle so don't be afraid to do it.4. Tilt
Tilt refers to playing recklessly or emotionally after a bad beat or losing streak. Staying off tilt is crucial to long-term success, so... don't tilt!5. Check-Raise
A check-raise is when a player checks initially to induce a bet, then raises after their opponent bets. It’s a deceptive and aggressive play, usually done if someone has a good hand and wants to increase the value of the pot.It's a trap set up for someone who is not expecting it, especially if he has a decent hand he can't separate himself from. It is a good tehnique to reverse the position strength during a hand, since you speak first and can check then raise when the opponent tries to steal the pot (or just wants to test the waters).
6. Value Bet
A value bet is made with a strong hand when you believe your opponent will call with a weaker one, aiming to extract the maximum chips. Knowing how to value bet correctly is an art, since you want your bet to be not so small that your opponent might raise and put you in a weaker position (because now you have to consider the chance your read his card range wrong).Or, other players might join in, in search for a gutshot or a backdoor draw; and you don't want it to be too big either, as to scare the opponent away and winning a meager pot.
7. Slow Roll
A slow roll is when a player intentionally delays showing their winning hand at showdown, or takes a long time to consider calling a bet/raise with a very strong hand practically guaranteed to win.This technique is sometimes used to try and make the opponent nervous or tilting, since it makes him think he is going to win or has good chances of doing so, but in the end his cards gets crushed by the winning hand. It is rightfully considered poor etiquette and you should not use it at the table.
8. Three-Bet
A three-bet refers to the third raise in a betting sequence: there's a bet, a raise and then pre-flop a reraise would be a Three Bet. It’s typically a sign of strength and is used to protect a strong hand and push out of the pot weaker hands that might be lucky at the flop.Sometimes it can be used to bluff, which is a dangerous strategy if someone else has a very good hand: although in this case, with a friendly flop, an odd hand that wasn't worth of the Three Bet can find itself to be suddenly a winner, inside a range that will be almost completely impossible for the opponent to read.
- Example: The first player raises, the second player re-raises (three-bets), and others act accordingly.
9. Limp
To limp is to call the minimum bet pre-flop instead of raising. It’s often seen as a passive or weak play in most scenarios, and can be a sign of someone chasing a specific card or having a straight/flush project in the making. Such a behaviour could make your opponents decide to try and push you out to protect less-than-stellar hands, which in turn can give you some hints on their playing style or even on their range.This is way sometimes a limp can turn all of a sudden in a check-raise trap. Maybe he wasn't just chasing a card all along and was already quite sure of his hand.
10. Flop, Turn, and River
These are the basic-VERY basic terms you cannot afford not to know. They refer to the community cards dealt during a Texas Hold’em game:- Flop: The first three cards.
- Turn: The fourth card.
- River: The fifth and final card.
11. Poker Face
No matter if you are in a bluff or you are about to bet or raise with a strong hand: a poker face is needed to conceal your intentions and your strategy. A poker face is quite straight (no pun intended): no expressions, no emotions.Hard to get tells from you if you just cold stare at the pot or at your opponent without giving out any sign of strength or weakness. Some very skilled player can have a Poker Persona, where they act and joke and discuss always in the same way during a whole game or tournament, regardless their hand.
The purpose is the same to a Poker Face, but the Poker Persona it is quite harder to pull out because the more you do, the more even a slight difference in your actions driven by a strong or weak hand will stand out and give out a tell to the other players.
12. Hero Call
A hero call happens when a player calls a large bet with a marginal hand, relying on their read that the opponent is bluffing, or that the opponent has not read correctly his disadvantage, yet the bet he placed made the call quite hard to push forward.In this case, since a conservative or even standard strategy would call for a fold (that in itself, depending on the situation, would be even be considered correct even though the hand was a winning one), the sheer act of defying the norms and push forward in the pot those hard earned chips is an heroic move. So... hero call.
13. Nuts
The nuts is the best possible hand given the current board. It means that said hand is going to win no matter what, even if dragged to the final showdown: as soon as you recognize you have the nuts, your main goal is to extract the max value you can out of the situation, trying to keep the opponent or opponents as long as you can in play, and trying to make them put in the pot as much chips as you can without making them fold.- Example: On a J-10-8 board, holding Q-K gives you the nut straight.
14. Overpair
An overpair is a pocket pair higher than any card on the board. It means that you can beat any hand that finds a pair thanks to one of the card on the board, but it is usually more important after the flop: less card are down, less chances there are someone else has already a point higher than a pair. In cases like this you may want to protect your hand by showing strength, and you can relatively easily tell what your opponents are up to if they call you, depending on their subsequent action after another cards fall down.Or if the flop appears to be blank, sometimes you might want to risk a value bet. But be prepared, for even the most innocent of flops can completely turn itself around after the turn gets revealed!
- Example: Holding J-J on a 10-8-4 board.
15. Squeeze Play
A squeeze play is a large re-raise after an initial raise and one or more calls, designed to isolate the original raiser or take the pot outright. It is called Squeeze because the goal is to squeeze out of the hand at least one player, in order to reduce the range of hands you have to defend against after the flop. If you squeeze with less-than-average hole cards, you can put yourself in a risky position, but you may be rewarded if the flop comes to your rescue.16. Floating
Floating means calling a bet on the flop with the intention of bluffing on later streets (Later Streets: turn and river). The name refers to the action of staying in play without weighing at all, leaving open a lot of possibilities for later. Floating isn't easy in a table full of aggressive players, but if there are frequent limpers it might open you chances of stealing some very good pots.17. Cold Call
To cold call is to call a raise following a bet from other players without having previously invested in the pot (no blind or raise involvement). So you come in from the cold, in a sense, and your action is very hard to read. You may want to do so with a certain range of hole cards, ones where you can think of a good project to be built at the flop. With pocket pairs, especially mid-tier, a cold call is asking for trouble so... don't.
18. Donk Bet
A donk bet is when a player out of position leads out with a bet, often surprising the aggressor of the previous round. It is called "Donk" because this kind of action is usually done by unexperienced players who get all worked up when the cards are going their direction, but of course this gives out a ton of information to the opponent that can use them to his complete advantage, on top of the already present position one.But a Donk Bet can be done right if in certain conditions can set up the scene for an epic bluff.
19. Under the Gun (UTG)
The UTG position is the player seated directly to the left of the big blind, acting first pre-flop. The terms refer to the fact that, being the last to talk in the hand, the big blind can "shoot" with a bet, a raise or a re-raise, therefore making your position quite weak. Unless you have a very strong hand it is better to just fold when UTG.20. Runner-Runner
A runner-runner describes hitting two perfect cards on the turn and river to make a strong hand. A runner runner is a very good lucky hit, because it can completely overwhelm whatever plan your opponent had.And while some runner-runners could make your hand quite obvious (think of a flush), some others (especially in cases of straight) could come to your rescue when you stayed too long in a pot you should have left.
- Example: With A♠ 4♠, and another ♠ on the flop, hitting K♠ Q♠ on the turn and river for a flush.
Talk the Talk, Play the Game
Understanding poker jargon isn’t just about fitting in—it’s about gaining insights that can improve your decision-making and help you communicate effectively at the table. Next time someone mentions a gutshot or a hero call, you’ll not only know what they’re talking about but also how to use it to your advantage. Now you can start your poker legend, and one day you will sit at the pros table!
