Ultimate Book of Card Games: The Comprehensive Guide to More Than 350 Games (90 page)

DEAL:
To distribute cards to players according to the rules of the game being played.

DEALS:
See
Hand
.

DECLARE:
To announce the contract in Bridge games, or to announce the number of tricks to be taken, the trump suit, etc., before the start of a hand.

DECLARER:
The player who makes the highest (winning) bid.

DEUCES:
A pair of twos in Poker games.

DOUBLETON:
Mostly a Bridge term, when a player holds exactly two cards of the same suit.

DOWN & DIRTY:
Refers to the last card dealt (face down) in Seven-Card Stud Poker games.

DRAW:
To take a card(s) from the deck, the stock, or a waste pile.

DUMMY:
A Bridge term referring to the declarer’s partner, who lays down his or her hand on the table, face up, for the active partner to play from.

DUMMY HAND:
Any hand dealt to the table that is subsequently turned up and played by the declarer.
ELDER HAND
:
The player who must make the opening bid or play the first card, often by virtue of having been dealt the first card and/or by sitting one seat left of the dealer.

FACE VALUE:
See
Index Value
.

FAN:
A Solitaire term for cards arranged face up, with the edges overlapping slightly so that the index value of all cards in the fan is visible.

FIFTH STREET:
The fifth card dealt in Seven-Card Stud games.

FINESSE:
Usually limited to Bridge and similar games; refers to playing the weaker of two cards in the hopes of winning an extra trick.

FLOP:
The three communal cards dealt face up in Texas Hold’em.

FLUSH:
A five-card Poker hand where all cards are of matching suit regardless of rank, as in Q of diamonds-8 of diamonds-5 of diamonds-3 of diamonds-2 of diamonds.

FOLD:
A Poker term for bowing out of the current hand. After folding players are out of the hand for good and must forfeit any money already contributed to the pot.

FORCE-FOLD:
A general term for being forced to quit a hand under certain conditions—for example when you draw, or are dealt, a certain card.

FOUNDATION:
A Solitaire term for the starting card or cards upon which all subsequent cards are built upon.

FOUR-OF-A-KIND:
Any four cards of matching rank, as in 3-3-3-3.

FOURTH STREET:
The fourth card dealt in Seven-Card Stud games.

FULL HOUSE:
Refers to a five-card Poker hand consisting of three-of-a-kind plus a pair, as in J-J-J-5-5.

GO OUT:
To play the last card in your hand, often in order to win the hand or game.

HAIL SATAN:
Three sixes; at pagan poker tables this is considered the highest possible hand.

HAND:
Most games are composed of individual hands (sometimes called deals), in which all players compete.

HIDDEN PAIR:
Any pair that cannot be seen by other players because one or more cards are in the hole.

HOLE CARDS:
Refers to any cards dealt face down in Poker games.

HONORS:
Refers to groupings of royalty cards (ace, king, queen, jack) that earn bonus points when held or captured by the same player or team.

HUSTY:
To spill liquid (usually beer) on a poker chip. Similarly, when two poker chips stick together, they have been
hustied
.

INDEX VALUE:
The intrinsic value of a card, represented by its rank number—e.g., the 7 of diamonds has an index value of seven, the 9 of hearts has an index value of nine, etc. The index value of face cards is typically 10, though this varies from game to game.

INSIDE STRAIGHT:
A Poker term for four cards requiring an additional card in the middle to make a straight, as in 6-5-3-2.

KICKER:
Refers to a high card
not
part of the original hand, but used to determine a pot winner in case of ties. For example, Q-Q-10 beats Q-Q-4 because the 10 is a higher kicker card.

KITTY:
See
Pot
.

KNOCK:
In Rummy and similar games, players knock when they feel their hand is good enough to win. Knocking typically means all competing players have one final chance to draw a card, discard, meld cards, etc.

MARKER:
See
Button
.

MARRIAGE:
The king and queen of matching suits in Rummy and similar games; in Solitaire it refers to any two cards in matching suit and/or sequence (depending on the requirements of the individual game).

MELD:
A combination of matching cards according to the rules of the individual game. Players are said to make or form melds by disclosing such a combination.

MUCK:
To discard a hand without showing your cards to anyone. This usually happens when all players but one fold. In that case, the winner is not required to show their “winning” hand to any other player.

NATURAL:
Refers to a nonwild card or nonwild hand. For example, a natural full house does not contain any wild cards.

NEAT:
Refers to the pot after all bets have been announced and all chips are in.

NO-PEEKIE:
Any game where players are not allowed to look at some (or all) of their cards prior to betting, bidding, or playing a card.

ONE-EYED JACK:
The J of hearts or J of spades, shown in profile.

OPEN STRAIGHT:
Four cards requiring an additional card at either end to make a straight, as in 6-5-4-3.

OVERCALL:
Any bid higher than the previous announced bid.

OVERTRICK:
In bidding games, any trick above and beyond what’s needed to win the contract.

PAIR:
Any two cards of matching rank, as in 5-5.

PARTNERSHIP:
When two or more players play together for a common goal. Partnerships are either permanent (lasting multiple hands) or temporary (lasting just one hand).

POT:
In Poker games it’s the amount of money, represented by chips, at the center of the table. The pot is eventually awarded to the winner(s) of the hand.

POT LIMIT:
Any gambling game where the maximum bet is the current value of the pot.

PRIAL:
An old-fashioned term that means ‘pair royal’ and refers to three cards of matching rank, as in 7-7-7.
See also
Trips
.

PUSH:
When two or more players win a game with identical cards or equal points, it’s called a “push.” In most games, no money changes hands when players push.

RANK:
The value of a card. Standard card rankings (high to low) are A-K-Q-J-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2.

RE-ANTE:
Refers to when all active players are forced to contribute an additional ante to the pot, typically because all players passed or failed to act in the previous round.

RESERVE:
A Solitaire term for cards that can be used under special circumstances to build on the tableau or the foundations.

RIVER:
The final card dealt in Texas Hold’em.

ROUND:
A single hand of cards is typically broken into rounds, in which each active player is required to perform some action (play a card, discard, make a bet, etc.).

RUBBER:
A Bridge term, referring to the number of games needed for a team to win. A team winning two out of three games typically wins the rubber.

RUFF:
In trick-taking games it refers to playing a trump on a non-trump lead, and thereby winning the trick.

ROYALTY:
Refers to the ace, king, queen, and jack of any suit.

SEQUENCE:
Any run or combination of cards in ordered rank or numerical sequence with no gaps, as in 7-6-5 or K of hearts-Q of hearts-J of hearts depending on the game played.

SET:
As in “to be set,” means the bid winner failed to achieve his or her bid and suffers a scoring penalty depending on the game.

SHOE:
A device used in casinos to hold multiple decks of cards for the purposes of speeding up the dealing.

SHOWDOWN:
The point at which all active Poker players compare hands to determine a pot winner.

SINGLETON:
Mostly a Bridge term, when a player holds only one card of a suit.

SPLIT-POT:
Any gambling game where the pot is automatically split between two or more winners.

STAKES:
See
Buy-in
.

STARTER CARD:
A face-up card(s) played at the start of a hand, generally used as a foundation card (in Solitaire) or as a card to be swapped, traded, or matched depending on the game played.

STOCK PILE:
Any cards not initially dealt, but used later in the hand or game.

STOPPER:
Refers to any high-ranking card in a suit that is guaranteed to win a trick. For example, A of spades is a stopper in spades. If you hold K of diamonds and another diamond, for example, the K of diamonds is considered a weak stopper, since K of diamonds is highly likely to win at least one trick in diamonds.

STRAIGHT:
Refers to a five-card Poker hand where all cards are in sequence, as in 7-6-5-4-3.

STRAIGHT FLUSH:
Refers to a five-card Poker hand where all cards are in sequence and matching suit, as in 7 of hearts-6 of hearts-5 of hearts-4 of hearts-3 of hearts. The highest straight flush, called a “Royal Straight Flush,” is A-K-Q-J-10 of matching suit.

SUICIDE KING:
The K of hearts, with a sword through his head.

SUITS:
Refers to cards of a matching type, usually indicated by the symbols of hearts (hearts), of spades (spades), of clubs (clubs), of diamonds (diamonds).

TABLE STAKES:
See
Buy-In
.

TABLE TALK:
Refers to players or spectators of a game discussing any aspect of the current hand or game, its strategy, what has been discarded, who’s bluffing, etc. Table talk is not allowed in most games.

TABLEAU:
A Solitaire term for the starting layout of a game, typically including piles of cards organized in a specific pattern or order.

THIRD STREET:
The third card dealt in Seven-Card Stud Poker games.

THREE-OF-A-KIND:
Any three cards of matching rank, as in 8-8-8.

TRICK:
A complete round, with all active players contributing a card in succession to a shared pool of cards on the table. Tricks are typically won by the highest card in the leading suit, or by the highest trump.

TRIPS:
Three-of-a-kind, as in “trip 7s” or “trip 10s.”

TRUMP:
Any suit that has been elevated temporarily (as in Bridge) or permanently (as in Spades) to superior status above the other three suits.

TURN:
Within individual hands of a game, each active player has his own specific turn to perform an action (e.g., make a bet, fold, etc.). In Texas Hold’em the ‘turn’ refers to the fourth common card dealt.

TURN-UP CARD:
A card exposed off the top of the deck at the start of some games, used to determine trump suit for the hand.

UNDERTRICK:
In bidding games, any trick less than what’s needed to win the contract.

UPCARD:
Any card turned face-up.

VOID:
Refers to a suit that is completely absent from a hand.

VULNERABLE:
A Bridge term for the team that has won one game in a rubber, and thereby attracts additional scores or penalties in the next game.

WASTE PILE:
Refers to discarded cards, which often can be replayed or reused later in the hand when certain conditions are met.

WHEEL:
Refers to the hand 5-4-3-2-A, which is sometimes considered a winning low hand
and
a strong high hand.

WIDOW:
A hand dealt to the table and not to any specific player. In some games players exchange cards with the widow hand; in gambling games players must often beat all active players as well as the widow hand in order to claim the pot.

WILD CARD:
Any card that is temporarily or permanently used to represent another card in the deck.