10 “Must Know” Poker Terms
The following ten poker terms are something every poker player should know, regardless of experience. They’ll help keep you informed of what’s going on at the table and prevent you from looking like a rookie player to the others in the game.
1. All-In: When either you or another player pushes his last remaining chips into a pot.
2. Heads-Up: When just two players are left in any given hand.
3. Bad Beat: When someone loses a hand when they were a huge favorite to win, such as when you have pocket aces and are defeated by pocket deuces.
4. Blinds: The blinds are the mandatory bets that must be placed into a pot before a round can begin. Most Texas Hold’em games use a two blind system, called the Big Blind and the Small Blind. If you’re seated at a $4-$8 Hold’em game, the big blind puts out $8 while the small blind puts out $4. The positioning of the big/small blind changes every hand.
5. The Flop: The flop is the first three community cards dealt by the dealer. In a game of Texas Hold Em, there are five community cards total.
6. The Turn: The turn is the fourth community card dealt, also known as Fourth Street.
7. The River: The river is the fifth community card dealt, also known as Fifth Street.
8. Kicker: The kicker is your tie-breaking card in reference to hand strength. For example, if you have a Ace with a King and your opponent has a Ace with a Queen, your King kicker is stronger than his Queen kicker if a Ace comes on the flop, turn or river.
9. Limp: Limping into a pot is when you simply call the big blind without making a raise.
10. The Board: The board is the word used to describe where the dealer lays out all the community cards, essentially just the middle part of the card table.
