Each mobile casino game, whether online roulette or online scratch cards, has its own terms. If you’re just starting your poker journey, you’ve probably been floating around reading or listening to another player in a live casino, using a term you’ve never heard before. Don’t worry, this is normal, and you don’t have to know everything. At least not now. We know not what the future of online casinos has in stock for us, but as you play and also read more content to improve your game, you will naturally learn more about specific poker terms.
Thinking to help you speed up this process, here are the main Poker terms you need to know:
Add-on:
Amount (optional) paid to purchase more chips at the end of a predetermined period.
Air:
A worthless hand, a hand that didn’t hit anything.
All-in:
Bet all your chips.
Aggressor:
It is the player who raised the pre-flop, so this player is the aggressor of the hand.
Ante:
A small amount of chips that players have to pay before starting the hand.
Ax:
When you have an Ace with any other card.
Backdoor:
When you still have the chance to hit a hand if you hit the right cards on the turn and the river. It is one of the most important poker terms that is used in straight and flushes.
Bad beat:
This poker term states a situation when a hand that is favorite to win ends up losing to a smaller hand.
Big blind:
The big blind in poker is the player who must pay a full bet before starting the hand.
Blind:
Blinds are the players who have to call the initial bet before the hand starts. The big blind always pays the full bet, and the small blind pays half.
Blocking bet:
When the player who is the first to speak places a small bet in order to reach the showdown for a cheap amount.
Broadway cards:
Cards that are connected and can end in a sequence with As. Ex: KQ, KJ, QJ, JT, etc.
Bubble:
Refers to the last place before the award zone.
Button (button/dealer):
It is the button in front of the player sitting in the dealer’s position at the time of the hand. It is also always the last player to speak in the hand.
Cash game:
Type of game where the stakes are worth real money.
Call:
Pay a bet.
Calling station:
It is a type of passive player who has a habit of always paying bets.
Check:
Ask for a table, or pass the turn.
Check behind:
It is the action of checking after another player has also checked.
Check raise:
When a player decides to raise after having checked.
Cold call:
When a call is made after more than one bet has already occurred in the round.
Coin flip:
When you are involved in a situation where the chances of winning or losing are approximately 50/50.
Cooler:
This poker term signifies an unlucky situation for a player who has a very good hand, but his opponent ends up having a stronger hand.
Connector:
Connector is the starting hands with cards next to each other, eg, 76, 32, TJ, 89 etc.
Cut off:
In poker, the player who is seated to the right of the player on the button is called a cut-off.
Dead money:
Money or chips that are already in the pot.
Donk Bet:
When the player calls a raise pre-flop out of position and after the flop he goes out betting before the aggressor pre-flop.
Draw:
When you have a hand that hasn’t formed anything yet, but that can improve in the next rounds.
Float:
In poker, the float is a movement where the player faces a paid bet (even if he has not hit anything) in the expectation that his opponent will stop betting in the next rounds so that he bluffs or even takes his hand to the showdown.
Flop:
The flop in poker refers to the first 3 community cards that are dealt at the table; this is the meaning of this word so used at the tables.
Flip:
When you are involved in a situation where the chances of winning or losing are approximately 50/50.
Flush:
When 5 cards of the same suit are hit.
Fold:
Fold in poker is the act of folding the hand; we usually say “fold” when referring to that.
Fold equity:
It’s the chance you have to make your opponents fold when you decide to raise or even move all in.
Free card:
When you are the last to act in the round and have the option to pass the turn to see a card at no cost, or when you decide to check and your opponent too, soon both will see a free card.
Full house:
When you are able to form a set and a pair, it is given the name of a full house.
GAP:
Gap, ex: you are on the button, and the table runs in GAP, it means that all the other players folded and the action reached you without any previous action.
Gutshot straight:
When you have the chance to make a straight, but only the straight’s middle card is missing, e.g., you have 78, and the flop comes 9J2, so you have a gutshot because you need a T to complete your straight.
Hand for hand:
In poker, this term refers to when each hand in a tournament is played simultaneously on each table. This usually happens in a bubble situation or in pay jump situations to avoid mistakes in the distribution of the prizes among the players that are being eliminated.
Implied odds:
Pot odds that do not exist at the moment but can be included in your calculations because of bets you expect to win if you hit your hand.
Kicker:
An unmatched card used to determine which hand is the best.
Late position:
These are the players who are the last to speak in a round of betting (button positions, CUT off, and hijack are usually considered late positions).
Limp:
In poker, “limping” refers to the action of entering a pot just by paying a minimum bet.
Live cards:
When you have a hand that is not the favorite but still has a good chance of winning, e.g., your opponent has AK and you QJ, you are not the favorite but still have live cards.
That’s all!
