The following is a

glossary A glossary (from grc, γλῶσσα, ''glossa''; language, speech, wording) also known as a vocabulary or clavis, is an alphabetical list of Term (language), terms in a particular domain of knowledge with the definitions for those terms. Tradi ...

of terms used in

card games A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ...

. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to

Bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

, Hearts,

Poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game w ...

Rummy Rummy is a group of matching-card games notable for similar gameplay based on matching cards of the same rank or sequence and same suit. The basic goal in any form of rummy is to build '' melds'' which can be either sets (three or four of a k ...

), but apply to a wide range of card games. For glossaries that relate primarily to one game or family of similar games, see Game-specific glossaries.

A

;

Ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the c ...

# The card with one pip in a pack of cards. Usually the highest card of a

suit A suit, lounge suit, or business suit is a set of clothes comprising a suit jacket and trousers of identical textiles worn with a collared dress shirt, necktie, and dress shoes. A skirt suit is similar, but with a matching skirt instead of tr ...

ranking A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either "ranked higher than", "ranked lower than" or "ranked equal to" the second. In mathematics, this is known as a weak order or total preorder of o ...

immediately above the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

. May also occupy the lowest rank. # Commonly refers to the Deuce or Two in

German-suited pack German-suited playing cards are a very common style of traditional playing card used in many parts of Central Europe characterised by 32- or 36-card packs with the suits of Acorns (''Eichel'' or ''Kreuz''), Leaves (''Grün'', ''Blatt'', ''Laub ...

s which don't have real Aces. Often the highest card of a suit. Bavarian pack-Suit of Acorns

; Acorns : One of the four suits in a

of cards. Symbol: Bay eichel

; active # A card that is in play i.e. not

sleeping Sleep is a sedentary state of mind and body. It is characterized by altered consciousness, relatively inhibited sensory activity, reduced muscle activity and reduced interactions with surroundings. It is distinguished from wakefulness by a de ...

. # See

active player Card players are those participating in a card game. Various names are given to card players based on their role or position. Position Games of Anglo-American origin In games of Anglo-American origin played in English-speaking countries, ...

. ;

# A player who receives cards in the current

deal A deal, or deals may refer to: Places United States * Deal, New Jersey, a borough * Deal, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * Deal Lake, New Jersey Elsewhere * Deal Island (Tasmania), Australia * Deal, Kent, a town in England * Deal, ...

(i.e. is not sitting out because there are more players than the

game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...

is designed for as in four-hand Skat or five-hand

Schafkopf Schafkopf (), also called Bavarian Schafkopf, is a popular German Trick-taking game, trick-taking card game of the Ace-Ten family for four players that evolved, towards the end of the 19th century, from German Schafkopf. It is still very popular i ...

). # A player who has ''not'' withdrawn from the current

but elected to play on (as in

Rams In engineering, RAMS (reliability, availability, maintainability and safety)Poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game w ...

). ; adversary : Any opposing player, especially in two-hand

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

, or an opponent of the

declarer Card players are those participating in a card game. Various names are given to card players based on their role or position. Position Games of Anglo-American origin In games of Anglo-American origin played in English-speaking countries, ...

. See

defenders Defender(s) or The Defender(s) may refer to: *Defense (military) *Defense (sports) **Defender (association football) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Defender'' (1989 film), a Canadian documentary * ''The Defender'' (1994 f ...

. ; adverse : Pertaining to an

adversary An adversary is generally considered to be a person, group, or force that opposes and/or attacks. Adversary may also refer to: * Satan ("adversary" in Hebrew), in Judeo-Christian religion Entertainment Fiction * Adversary (comics), villain fro ...

or opponent e.g. an adverse

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

is one made by an opponent; adverse

trumps A trump is a playing card which is elevated above its usual rank in trick-taking games. Typically, an entire suit is nominated as a ''trump suit''; these cards then outrank all cards of plain (non-trump) suits. In other contexts, the terms ''tru ...

are those held by one's opponent(s). ; age : Order of priority for

leading In typography, leading ( ) is the space between adjacent lines of type; the exact definition varies. In hand typesetting, leading is the thin strips of lead (or aluminium) that were inserted between lines of type in the composing stick to incre ...

betting Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...

bidding Bidding is an offer (often competitive) to set a price tag by an individual or business for a product or service ''or'' a demand that something be done. Bidding is used to determine the cost or value of something. Bidding can be performed by ...

, starting from the player next to the

dealer Dealer may refer to: Film and TV * ''Dealers'' (film), a 1989 British film * ''Dealers'' (TV series), a reality television series where five art and antique dealers bid on items * ''The Dealer'' (film), filmed in 2008 and released in 2010 * ...

. See

eldest ''Eldest'' is the second novel in the ''Inheritance Cycle'' by Christopher Paolini and the sequel to ''Eragon''. It was first published in hardcover on August 23, 2005, and was released in paperback in September 2006. ''Eldest'' has been released ...

and youngest. ; alliance : A temporary

partnership A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments o ...

that lasts only for the current

hand A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "h ...

(e.g. Prop and Cop in Solo Whist or the normal

). ; alone : Playing without the help of a

partner Partner, Partners, The Partner, or, The Partners may refer to: Books * ''The Partner'' (Grisham novel), by John Grisham, 1997 * ''The Partner'' (Jenaro Prieto novel), 1928 * ''The Partners'' (book), a 1983 book by James B. Stewart * ''Partner'' (m ...

. See

and soloist. ; announce : See

declare ''Declare'' (2000) is a supernatural spy novel by American author Tim Powers. The novel presents a secret history of the Cold War, and earned several major fantasy fiction awards. Plot summary The non-linear plot, shifting back and forth in tim ...

. ; announcement # Often used in both senses of

declaration Declaration may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Declaration'' (book), a self-published electronic pamphlet by Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri * ''The Declaration'' (novel), a 2008 children's novel by Gemma Malley Music ...

. However, Dummett prefers to restrict 'announcement' for the intention to achieve certain feats in

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...

, while preferring 'declaration' for a statement that one has a special

combination In mathematics, a combination is a selection of items from a set that has distinct members, such that the order of selection does not matter (unlike permutations). For example, given three fruits, say an apple, an orange and a pear, there are th ...

of cards in one's

. ; ante # A mandatory stake made before the

begins - usually by all players, sometimes by the

only. # Chips required to be put into the pot before the deal. # To put in such chips. ; around the corner : Phrase that describes

sequences In mathematics, a sequence is an enumerated collection of objects in which repetitions are allowed and order matters. Like a set, it contains members (also called ''elements'', or ''terms''). The number of elements (possibly infinite) is called t ...

or runs that are built either side of the Ace e.g. Q K A 2 3 4 ; auction : The period of bidding. The phase in some

where players may bid to lead the

, or bid on a certain

or privilege in that hand such as naming the

trump suit A trump is a playing card which is elevated above its usual rank in trick-taking games. Typically, an entire suit is nominated as a ''trump suit''; these cards then outrank all cards of plain (non-trump) suits. In other contexts, the terms ''tru ...

. The player with the highest bid wins the auction and plays his chosen

or exercises his privilege. Often used in

trick-taking game A trick-taking game is a card or tile-based game in which play of a ''hand'' centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called ''tricks'', which are each evaluated to determine a winner or ''taker'' of that trick. The object of such g ...

s.''Glossary of Card Game Terms''
at www.catsatcards.com. Retrieved 11 August 2018

B

;

balanced hand A balanced hand or balanced distribution in card games is a hand with an even distribution of suits. In the game of contract bridge, it denotes a hand of thirteen cards which contains no singleton or void and at most one . Three hand patterns are ...

: A hand of cards with no void suit,

singleton Singleton may refer to: Sciences, technology Mathematics * Singleton (mathematics), a set with exactly one element * Singleton field, used in conformal field theory Computing * Singleton pattern, a design pattern that allows only one instance ...

or very long suit. ; banker : Also called the

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

or the bank, the person responsible for distributing

chips ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The serie ...

, keeping track of the buy-ins, and paying winners at the end of a

banking game The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

. A

against whom the punters bet. ; banking game : A less-skilled

card game A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ...

of the gambling type in which one or more punters play against a

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

, who controls the

. ; base value : A constant factor in working out the value of a game e.g. Skat. ; Batons : One of the four suits in a Latin-suited pack of cards. Symbol: Seme bastoni carte bergamasche

; beater : Term used in games of the Karnöffel family for quasi-trump cards able to beat those of lower rank or with no powers at all. ; belle : The last

of the

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...

. ; Bells : One of the four suits in a German pack of cards. Symbol: Bay schellen

; best : Highest

. ; best card : Highest card of a

not yet played. The

commanding card The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge (card game), Bridge, Hearts ...

, master card. Also king card. ; bet # Any wager on the outcome of a

; any

put in a pot; to put chips in a pot. # The first bet in a betting interval. ;

bête Bête, la Bête (french: Jeu de la Bête), Beste or la Beste (''Jeu de la Beste''), originally known as Homme or l'Homme (''Jeu de l'Homme''), was an old, French, trick-taking card game, usually for three to five players. It was a derivative of Tr ...

, bate, bete or beet. # A

penalty Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) A p ...

payment in certain

for e.g. for failing to take the minimum number of tricks, or for a stake or money which a player has lost.�
Bete
�� In: Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon, Band 2. Leipzig 1905, S. 765. # A player who fails to takes a single

trick Trick(s) may refer to: People * Trick McSorley (1852–1936), American professional baseball player * Armon Trick (born 1978), retired German international rugby union player * David Trick (born 1955), former Ontario civil servant and univers ...

in Mistigri.�
Mistigri
�� In: Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon, Vol. 13. Leipzig 1908, p. 907. Likewise in

Mauscheln Mauscheln, also Maus or Vierblatt, is a gambling card game that resembles Tippen, which is commonly played in Germany and the countries of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire. Background Origin of the name The name Mauscheln means something like ...

, if the

, or ''Mauschler'', fails to win a

, he is the ''Mauschlerbete''. # Failure to make a

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

. # Conceding defeat without playing. # ''Double bête'': a double

, usually for failing to make a

after choosing to play out the cards. ; bettel or bettler : Bid or

to win no tricks. Also

misère Misère ( French for "destitution"), misere, bettel, betl, or (German for "beggar"; equivalent terms in other languages include , , ) is a bid in various card games, and the player who bids misère undertakes to win no tricks or as few as possi ...

. ; bid # An offer to win a minimum or specified number of tricks or points or the privilege of naming the

or the

.Galt, David
''Card Game Glossary''
at entertainment.howstuffworks.com. Retrieved 11 August 2018. # To make a bid. ; bidder # Any player who makes a bid. # The player who makes the highest bid and plays out his announced

. ; blank # In card-point

, a card that is worth no points. A

non-counter The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge (card game), Bridge, Hearts ...

. # A hand with no

court cards In a deck of playing cards, the term face card (US) or court card (British and US), and sometimes Royalty, is generally used to describe a card that depicts a person as opposed to the pip cards. They are also known as picture cards, or until the ...

, i.e. only

pip cards Pips are small but easily countable items, such as the dots on dominoes and dice, or the symbols on a playing card that denote its suit and value. Dice On dice, pips are small dots on each face of a common six-sided die. These pips are typica ...

. # A card that is unguarded by other, usually lower cards in the same suit: "I held the blank king of spades." # To discard in such a way as to leave a card unprotected: "She blanked the King of Spades." # To

void Void may refer to: Science, engineering, and technology * Void (astronomy), the spaces between galaxy filaments that contain no galaxies * Void (composites), a pore that remains unoccupied in a composite material * Void, synonym for vacuum, a ...

a suit. ; blank suit : A

of which one holds no cards. A

(suit). To ''blank a suit'' is to get rid of all the cards of that suit from one's hand. ; blaze : A

consisting only of

. ; blind : See skat or

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word ...

. ; blocking : Blocking a

is keeping a high card back so that the player with a number of smaller cards cannot win tricks with them. ; bluff # To attempt to deceive one's opponent(s) about the

value Value or values may refer to: Ethics and social * Value (ethics) wherein said concept may be construed as treating actions themselves as abstract objects, associating value to them ** Values (Western philosophy) expands the notion of value beyo ...

of cards in one's

. # To use various tactics to mislead one's opponent(s) about the distribution of cards or one's strategy. ; build : To add cards to those already on the table in order to extend a

set Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics *Set (mathematics), a collection of elements *Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively Electro ...

sequence In mathematics, a sequence is an enumerated collection of objects in which repetitions are allowed and order matters. Like a set, it contains members (also called ''elements'', or ''terms''). The number of elements (possibly infinite) is calle ...

. ; bonus : An extra amount added to a player's score for the

for holding or winning certain cards or for achieving certain goals, such as '' Schneider''. ; Bower : The

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

of the

or the Jack of the same colour as the

e.g. in

Euchre Euchre or eucre () is a trick-taking card game commonly played in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Great Britain, and the United States. It is played with a deck of 24, 28, or 32 standard playing cards. Normally there are four players, two on e ...

Reunion Reunion may refer to: * Class reunion * Family reunion Reunion, Réunion, Re-union, Reunions or The Reunion may also refer to: Places * Réunion, a French overseas department and island in the Indian Ocean * Reunion, Commerce City, Colorado, U ...

. :: ''Left Bower'': the

of the same colour as the

. :: ''Right Bower'': the

of the

. ; bring in a suit : Make tricks in a plain suit after the

adverse Adverse or adverse interest, in law, is anything that functions contrary to a party (law), party's interest. This word should not be confused with wikt:averse, averse. Adverse possession In property law, adverse possession refers to an interest i ...

are exhausted. ; bury a card : To place a card in the middle of the pack or

discard pile The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

so that it cannot be easily located. ; buy # To receive a card from the

, face down, in return for a stake e.g. in Twenty-One. # To receive or draw the spare

, ( skat or

) in return for one's own hand and, possibly, a stake e.g. in Newmarket. # To receive or pick up a card or cards in return for a

card or cards e.g. in

Préférence Préférence, frequently spelt Preference, is a Central and Eastern European 10-card plain-trick game with bidding, played by three players with a 32-card Piquet deck, and probably originating in early 19th century Austria, becoming the second ...

when the 2

talon Talon or talons may refer to: Science and technology * Talon (anatomy), the claw of a bird of prey * Brodifacoum, a rodenticide, also known as the brand Talon * TALON (database), a database maintained by the US Air Force * Talon, an anti-vehicle- ...

cards are picked up and 2 discarded. # To draw cards from the

stock In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especially AmE'' one of the shares into which ownership of a company ...

C

; call : To

, bid or

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places * Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland * Pass, Poland, a village in Poland * Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see List of straits * Mountain pass, a lower place in a moun ...

. Any such

; capture : To pick up or take cards during play, often as part of a

. ;

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

: the player who directs the play of his team or who has the final decision in certain

. ; card money : The charge levied by an establishment on the playing of card games. ; card points : The scoring value of a card or cards in

point-trick game A trick-taking game is a card or tile-based game in which play of a '' hand'' centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called ''tricks'', which are each evaluated to determine a winner or ''taker'' of that trick. The object of such ...

s. Card points are used to determine the winner of a

, based on the value of individual cards won. Not to be confused with game points. Sometimes called pips. ; card value : See

card points The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

. ; carte blanche : A hand with no

(see blank), for example, in

Piquet Piquet (; ) is an early 16th-century plain-trick card game for two players that became France's national game. David Parlett calls it a "classic game of relatively great antiquity... still one of the most skill-rewarding card games for two" but ...

Comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...

Bezique Bezique () or Bésigue () is a 19th-century French melding and trick-taking card game for two players that came to Britain and is still played today. The game is derived from Piquet,''Transactions of the Philological Society'', Philological Soc ...

; or with either no court cards or no

in Briscan''Le Briscan''
at academiedesjeux.jeuxsoc.fr. Retrieved 11 Jan 2019. ; case card : The last remaining card of a denomination left in play. ; Cavalier : The

court card A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance w ...

in certain card packs that usually ranks below the

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

and above the

. ; chicane : A hand with no

. ; chip : A token used in place of money; a

counter Counter may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Counter machine, a subclass of register machines * Counter (digital), an electronic device, mechanical device, or computer program for counting * Loop counter, the variable that controls the iter ...

; to put chips in the pot Also

jeton Jetons or jettons are tokens or coin-like medals produced across Europe from the 13th through the 18th centuries. They were produced as counters for use in calculation on a counting board, a lined board similar to an abacus. They also found use ...

. ; chosen suit : A suit characterised by a disturbed ranking and in which some cards have privileges over cards of the unchosen suits or special powers when led. Chosen suits are found in most games of the

Karnöffel group Karnöffel is a trick-taking card game which probably came from the upper-German language area in Europe in the first quarter of the 15th century. It first appeared listed in a municipal ordinance of Nördlingen, Bavaria, in 1426 among the games ...

. Sometimes called a selected suit. Sometimes also misnamed a

.''Karnöffel Group''
at pagat.com. Retrieved 11 October 2020. Giatribai

; clear # Establish a card or

by forcing out

higher cards or stoppers. # Having taken no penalty cards e.g. in Hearts. ; close : To bar further use of the

by turning the

trump card ''Trump Card'' is an American syndicated game show that aired from September 10, 1990, to May 24, 1991, hosted by Jimmy Cefalo. Debi Massey served as hostess and Chuck Riley was the announcer. The show was produced by Telepictures Productions, ...

over and placing it on the top in

such as Sixty-Six and

Schnapsen Schnapsen, Schnapser or Schnapsa is a trick-taking card game of the Bézique ( Ace-Ten) family that is very popular in Bavaria and in the territories of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and has become the national card game of Austria and Hungar ...

. ;

Clubs Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea'' Brands and enterprises ...

: One of the four suits in a

French-suited French-suited playing cards or French-suited cards are cards that use the French suits of (clovers or clubs ), (tiles or diamonds ), (hearts ), and (pikes or spades ). Each suit contains three or four face/court cards. I ...

Spanish-suited Spanish-suited playing cards or Spanish-suited cards have four suits, and a deck is usually made up of 40 or 48 cards (or even 50 by including two jokers). It is categorized as a Latin-suited deck and has strong similarities with the Italian- ...

pack of cards. Symbol: SuitClubs

;

coat card In a deck of playing cards, the term face card (US) or court card (British and US), and sometimes Royalty, is generally used to describe a card that depicts a person as opposed to the pip cards. They are also known as picture cards, or until the e ...

: Original term for

, now obsolete. ; coffee housing : To talk and act in order to mislead one's opponents about one's cards. Siete de Oros

;

Coins A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to ...

: One of the four suits in a Latin-suited pack of cards. Symbol: Seme denari carte bergamasche

; color, colour : In

French-suited packs French-suited playing cards or French-suited cards are cards that use the French suits of (clovers or clubs ), (tiles or diamonds ), (hearts ), and (pikes or spades ). Each suit contains three or four face/court cards. I ...

, this is the colour of the suit symbols, which is red for Hearts and

Diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, b ...

and black for

and Spades. ; combination : Two or more cards that score a bonus when melded. Often called a

meld MELD may refer to: * Model for End-Stage Liver Disease, a prognostic model * A variant of the declarative language CycL * Molecular orbital diagram, Molecular energy-level diagram, a type of one-dimensional plot with a significant qualitative aspec ...

. ; command : The best card of a

, usually applied to suits which the

is trying to establish. See best card, king card and master card. ; commanding card # The best card of a

in play. Also best card, king card or master card. # The top trump or highest

matador A bullfighter (or matador) is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter and describe all the performers in the activit ...

such as the Knave of Clubs in

Knave Noddy Noddy (O.F. ''naudin'') also Noddie, Nodde or Knave Noddy, is a 16th-century English card game ancestor of Cribbage. It is the oldest identifiable card game with this gaming structure and thus probably also ancestral to the more-complicated 17th- ...

or the Right Bower in

. ; compendium game : A game in which a number of different

contracts A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

is played in succession e.g. Barbu,

Quodlibet A quodlibet (; Latin for "whatever you wish" from ''quod'', "what" and '' libet'', "pleases") is a musical composition that combines several different melodies—usually popular tunes—in counterpoint, and often in a light-hearted, humorous man ...

and

Poch Poch, Pochen or Pochspiel (french: Poque) is a very old card game that is considered one of the forerunners of poker, a game that developed in America in the 19th century. An etymological relationship between the game names is also assumed. G ...

. ; contract : An agreement or obligation to play a certain type of

, to win a certain number of points or tricks in a

round Round or rounds may refer to: Mathematics and science * The contour of a closed curve or surface with no sharp corners, such as an ellipse, circle, rounded rectangle, cant, or sphere * Rounding, the shortening of a number to reduce the number ...

. ; contractor : The highest

bidder Bidding is an offer (often competitive) to set a price tag by an individual or business for a product or service ''or'' a demand that something be done. Bidding is used to determine the cost or value of something. Bidding can be performed by ...

who then plays out his

. ; contrat : A short rectangular counter or chip used in some French card games and

Danish Tarok Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

that is worth a number of jetons or fiches, typically 100 jetons.''Mouche''
for example. Retrieved 5 June 2022. ; counter # Object used to score. Token used in place of money; a

chip Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) is a type of immunoprecipitation experimental technique used to investigate the interaction between proteins and DNA in the cell. It aims to determine whether specific proteins are associated with specific genom ...

. Also

. # Card with a point value. Also counting card. ; counting card # A card that has an intrinsic scoring value when taken in a

. Also

. ; count out # During play, to claim to have enough points for

, thus ending the play; to go out during the play. ;

: One of the picture cards i.e. a

in a

French pack French-suited playing cards or French-suited cards are cards that use the French suits of (clovers or clubs ), (tiles or diamonds ), (hearts ), and (pikes or spades ). Each suit contains three or four face/court cards. I ...

; a King, Ober or Unter in a German pack, or a King, Queen,

Cavalier The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

and

Valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...

in a

Tarot pack The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

. Also

face card In a deck of playing cards, the term face card (US) or court card (British and US), and sometimes Royalty, is generally used to describe a card that depicts a person as opposed to the pip cards. They are also known as picture cards, or until the e ...

, picture card or royal card. Originally

. ; cover : To play a higher card ''of the same

'' than any previously played to the

. Also play over (but that can also mean to play any higher card). Not to be confused with

go over ''G∞ver'' is the debut album by High and Mighty Color. The album was released in Japan on September 14, 2005, following four supporting singles. It was later released by Tofu Records in the United States on March 21, 2006. Overview ''G∞ver ...

head the trick The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge (card game), Bridge, Hearts ...

or overtake. ; cross-ruff : Two partners alternately trumping a different

; cross-suit : Suit of the opposite colour. ;

Cups CUPS (formerly an acronym for Common UNIX Printing System) is a modular computer printer, printing system for Unix-like computer operating systems which allows a computer to act as a print server. A computer running CUPS is a Server (computi ...

: One of the four suits in a Latin-suited pack of cards. Symbol: Seme coppe carte bergamasche

;

cut Cut may refer to: Common uses * The act of cutting, the separation of an object into two through acutely-directed force ** A type of wound ** Cut (archaeology), a hole dug in the past ** Cut (clothing), the style or shape of a garment ** Cut (ea ...

: To divide the deck into two parts; usually after

shuffling Shuffling is a procedure used to randomize a deck of playing cards to provide an element of chance in card games. Shuffling is often followed by a cut, to help ensure that the shuffler has not manipulated the outcome. __TOC__ Techniques Overha ...

. Cards may also be cut to determine who deals or which

D

; dead card : One that cannot be used in the

. ; deadwood : Unmatched cards remaining in the hand e.g. in

. ; deal # Verb: To distribute cards to players in accordance with the rules of the

being played. In many games, this involves picking up all the cards,

them, having them

and redistributing them, but in other

(such as Patience games) it simply involves turning over the

wastepile The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

to act as a new

. # Noun: The play from the time the cards are dealt until they are redealt. Also referred to as a

;

: The person whose turn and responsibility it is to

the cards. ; deck : May refer either to the pack or the

. ; declaration # Announcement of melds or scoring

combinations In mathematics, a combination is a selection of items from a set that has distinct members, such that the order of selection does not matter (unlike permutations). For example, given three fruits, say an apple, an orange and a pear, there are t ...

, as in

. Dummett prefers to restrict 'declaration' to this sense, while preferring 'announcement' for the intention to achieve certain feats in play i.e. the 2nd meaning below. # The

at which a deal is played. A

call Call or Calls may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * Call, a type of betting in poker * Call, in the game of contract bridge, a bid, pass, double, or redouble in the bidding stage Music and dance * Call (band), from Lahore, Paki ...

or bid. ; declare # To bid or to announce the

trump Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. T ...

. # To announce; predict schneider or schwarz. # To

or show. # To count out. Note: Dummett prefers to restrict 'announce' for the intention to achieve certain feats in

, while using 'declare' for a statement that one has a special

of cards in one's

. ; declarer : In a contract game, the highest

who then tries to achieve the announced

. ; declaring side, declaring team : The side that wins the

auction An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

. The player who made the highest bid and his or her

who join forces to achieve the announced

. ; defenders : The opponents of the declarer(s) in

or Skat. Originally those 'defending' the

pool Pool may refer to: Water pool * Swimming pool, usually an artificial structure containing a large body of water intended for swimming * Reflecting pool, a shallow pool designed to reflect a structure and its surroundings * Tide pool, a rocky po ...

(see Pigott's Hoyle (1800).). ; denomination :The

rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * ...

of a card e.g. 2, 3, 4, etc. English pattern pack - Suit of Diamonds-IMG 7662

;

Deuce Deuce, Deuces, or The Deuce may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Deuce, in the ''Danger Girl'' comic book series * Deuce, a character in ''Shake It Up'' * Deuce, in the ''Wild Cards'' science fiction universe * Deuce Biga ...

: The Two of any

. In

s, the Deuce is nowadays usually called the

despite having 2 suit symbols. In Austria and Bavaria usually called the Sow (''Sau''). ;

: One of the four suits in a

of cards. Symbol: SuitDiamonds

; discard # To get rid of plain suit cards when unable to

follow suit A trick-taking game is a card or tile-based game in which play of a '' hand'' centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called ''tricks'', which are each evaluated to determine a winner or ''taker'' of that trick. The object of such ...

and unwilling or unable to

. # To lay away cards, e.g. of high value or to void a suit, after picking up from the

or skat. # A card that is removed from the hand in either of those ways. ; discard pile : The pile of cards already rejected by players. The common pile of discarded cards. Also

. ; double, redouble : To increase the game value by a factor of 2. Redoubling effectively quadruples the original game value. ; double-ended, double-figured, double-headed : Of a playing card, being designed to be read either way up by having indices at each end and, in the case of court cards, dividing the picture horizontally or diagonally and displaying only the upper part of the figure at each end. Also reversible. See single-ended. ; doubleton : Only two cards of the same

in the hand. ; downcard : A card lying face down. ; draw : To take a card from the

(

). Also 'buy' e.g. in Rummy.''Rummy Glossary''
at www.rummy-games.com. Retrieved 29 Nov 2019. ; draw lots : To select e.g. the first

by letting players choose a card at random from the fanned pack or by

cutting Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force. Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the scal ...

the pack ; drop : To withdraw from the current

; to discard one's hand rather than stake enough

to stay in the

. ; dummy,

dummy hand A dummy hand or ghost player is an imaginary extra player in a card game, used to make a game more challenging, as a special hand in a game or to compensate for a missing player. A ghost player can take the place of a human player either as a dead ...

: A hand dealt to an imaginary extra player, and often played out according to certain rules. ; durch, durchmarsch : See

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Marc ...

E

; elder # Sitting at the left (when the

rotation Rotation, or spin, is the circular movement of an object around a '' central axis''. A two-dimensional rotating object has only one possible central axis and can rotate in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. A three-dimensional ...

is clockwise. # Non-dealer in two-hand play. ; eldest # Of several players, the one nearest the dealer's left when the

is clockwise. May not necessarily be

eldest hand Card players are those participating in a card game. Various names are given to card players based on their role or position. Position Games of Anglo-American origin In games of Anglo-American origin played in English-speaking countries, ...

. # Short for

. ;

: This is the player to the left of the

in games that are played clockwise; or to the right of the dealer in those played anti-clockwise and who is usually first to bid or

and

. The first player to play in the

. Called forehand in many

. ; empty card : In

Tarock Tarot games are card games played with tarot decks, that is, decks with numbered permanent trumps parallel to the suit cards. The games and decks which English-speakers call by the French name Tarot are called Tarocchi in the original Italian, ...

games, a card without a special point value, usually a

pip card Pip, PIP, Pips, PIPS, and ''similar'', may refer to: Common meanings * Pip, colloquial name for the star(s) worn on military uniform as part of rank badge, as in the British Army officer rank insignia or with many Commonwealth police agencies * T ...

, but sometimes also an ordinary trump (i.e. not one of the

Trull cards The trull is a trio of three special trump cards used in tarock games in Austria and other countries that have a much higher card value than the other trumps. The individual cards are known as trull cards (''Trullstücke''). The word ''trull'' i ...

.Dummett & McLeod (2003), pp. 4–9. ; endhand : See

rearhand Card players are those participating in a card game. Various names are given to card players based on their role or position. Position Games of Anglo-American origin In games of Anglo-American origin played in English-speaking countries, ...

. ; entrump : To make a particular suit

. ; establish : To make cards the best by forcing out

higher cards; to clear. ; established suit : A suit is established if when you or your partner can take every

in it, regardless of who

leads Lead is a chemical element with symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead or The Lead may also refer to: Animal handling * Leash, or lead * Lead (leg), the leg that advances most in a quadruped's cantering or galloping stride * Lead (tack), a lin ...

. ; exit : To relinquish the

; force another player to win the

F

; face # The side of a card depicting its rank : To turn a card so that its rank is visible and its back underneath ;

: See

. ; face down : With the denomination side of the card downwards and its back upwards. ; faceup (US) : A card positioned so that it reveals its

and value. Also

upcard The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

. ; face value : The marked value of a card. Also pip value.

Court cards In a deck of playing cards, the term face card (US) or court card (British and US), and sometimes Royalty, is generally used to describe a card that depicts a person as opposed to the pip cards. They are also known as picture cards, or until the ...

are usually take to have a value of 10, the Ace 1 or 11. ; fall of the cards : The identity and order in which cards are played, especially as it gives an indication of the location of unplayed cards. ; fan # To spread cards fanwise. To spread a hand or pack of cards, face up, in an arc so that they can be identified from their corner indices. Alternatively to spread them, face down, in order to enable players to 'draw lots' in order, for example, to choose teams or the first dealer. # An arc of cards so fanned. A spread of face-up cards. # In

Patience (or forbearance) is the ability to endure difficult circumstances. Patience may involve perseverance in the face of delay; tolerance of provocation without responding in disrespect/anger; or forbearance when under strain, especially when faced ...

, a small number of cards laid in an overlapping row, so that only one is exposed. ; fatten : To discard counting cards to one's partner's tricks. Also smear. ; fat trick : A

that is rich in counting cards. ; fiche : A long rectangular

used in some French card games and

that is worth a number of jetons, typically 10 or 20. See also

contrat The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge (card game), Bridge, Hearts ...

. ; finesse : An attempt to take a

with a card that is not the best of the

; first hand # The leader to a

. # The first player to

. #

Eldest hand Card players are those participating in a card game. Various names are given to card players based on their role or position. Position Games of Anglo-American origin In games of Anglo-American origin played in English-speaking countries, ...

. ;

flush Flush may refer to: Places * Flush, Kansas, a community in the United States Architecture, construction and manufacturing * Flush cut, a type of cut made with a French flush-cut saw or diagonal pliers * Flush deck, in naval architecture * Flu ...

: Cards of the same

. ; fold # To withdraw or surrender the current

. # To withdraw from the

having been overcalled. ; follow suit : To play a card of the

led suit The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy) ...

. ; force # To compel a player to

in order to win it. A player may 'force out' trumps by leading a long plain suit in which the opponent is void. # A compulsory

in which all players must play and none may drop out. Also known in German

as a 'muss'. See

. ; forehand # Another term for

usually in

originating from Europe. The player who is usually first to receive cards, bid and

. Sits to the left of the

in clockwise games and right of the dealer in anticlockwise games. # The player who has the right to lead to a trick. Also said to be "in forehand". ;

French-suited pack French-suited playing cards or French-suited cards are cards that use the French suits of (clovers or clubs ), (tiles or diamonds ), (hearts ), and (pikes or spades ). Each suit contains three or four face/court cards. I ...

: A pack of cards with the four suits:

, Spades, Hearts and

. So-called because it originated in France, but now used worldwide. Compare with

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and Latin-suited pack. The standard 52-card pack consists of French-suited cards which may be of various patterns (English/International, Belgian-Genoese, Dondorf, Swedish, etc.). ; free card # A card with special privileges when led to a trick e.g. the Sevens in

Bruus Bruus, formerly Brausebart or Brusbart, is a very old north German card game for four players in two teams of two. It was once highly popular but has since died out except for a few pockets in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. As Brusbart, it was th ...

or the Eights and Nines in

Knüffeln Knüffeln is a very old trick-taking card game for four players, playing in pairs, that is still played in North Germany. Once considered the national game of Frisia, Knüffeln is a descendant of Karnöffel, the oldest identifiable European card ...

. # A card that cannot be beaten because all the trumps have been exhausted. # A card that cannot be beaten because all the trumps and higher cards have been played.

G

; game # A pastime in general, usually involving some form of competing. # A variant of a basic game e.g. Gin Rummy or

Wendish Schafkopf Wendish Schafkopf (german: Wendischer Schafkopf), Wendisch or Wendsch is a card game for four players that uses a Schafkopf pack of German-suited cards or a Skat pack of French playing cards. Aim The aim of the game is for each partnership of ...

. # A bid,

. # A period in a session of play which results in a winner. # The target number of points as in "game is 100 points". # Fulfilment of the declared contract as in "their team made game". # A style or system of play. ; game points : In

s, the score awarded to the players based on the outcome of a

, the game value of a

and any bonuses earned. Game points are accumulated (or deducted) to decide the overall winner. Not to be confused with

. ; game value : The amount a

is worth in points or

hard score The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge (card game), Bridge, Hearts ...

;

: A pack of cards with the four suits: Acorns,

Leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

, Hearts and Bells. So-called because it originated in Germany. Such packs are common in Austria, Germany, north Italy, Hungary and several other countries in eastern Europe. Compare with French and Latin-suited pack. ; good : Concession by a player that he or she accepts the bid and does not wish to bid against it. May be announced with "good." ; go out : To finish playing in the current

because a) you have got rid of all your cards (e.g. in

Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also c ...

or b) you have achieved the tricks or points needed to win (e.g. in

Fipsen Fipsen or Fips is an old north German card game for 4 or 5 players that resembles British Nap in some respects. It is a trick-taking game played with a standard Skat pack that was once popular across North Germany in the former states of Schle ...

or Sixty-Six). ; go over # To bid higher;

overcall In contract bridge, an overcall is a bid made after an opening bid has been made by an opponent; the term refers only to the first such bid. A ''direct'' overcall is such a bid made by the player seated immediately to the left of the opener, i.e ...

. # To

a higher card than any so far played to the trick. Also

or play over (but that can also mean to play a higher card of the same suit). Not to be confused with

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

or overtake. ; guard : One or more cards that protect a high card. A high card may be singly guarded, twice guarded, etc.

H

; hand # The cards held by one player ("playing hand") # The player holding the cards, as in "Third hand bid 1." # Synonymous with the noun usage of

. ; hand card : A card held in the hand as opposed to one on the table. ; hand game or handplay. : A type of

in certain

in which the skat or

is not used. See Hand game (cards). ; hard score : A game played for 'hard score' – as opposed to those played for

soft score The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge (card game), Bridge, Hearts ...

– is one played for money. Coins may be used to stake; alternatively chips or counters with an agreed monetary value may be utilised. ; head the trick : To play a better (i.e. higher) card than any already played to the

. Also

or play over (but that can also mean to play a higher card of the same suit). Not to be confused with

or overtake. Swedish pattern cards-Suit of Hearts down to Six-IMG 7484

; Hearts : One of the four suits in a

or German pack of cards. Symbols: U+2665

; hold : As an earlier

in the

, to match a higher bid, thus retaining the right to play a

. ; hold up : To refrain from playing (a high card). Also 'hold back'. ; honour : A card attracting a bonus score or side payment, usually to the player or team for holding and declaring them, but sometimes for capturing them in play. From the French ''honneur''. See

. ; house : See

I

; index : The number or letter printed in the corner of a playing card, so that it may be read when held in a fan. ; in turn : A player, or an action, is said to be in turn if that player is expected to act next under the rules. ''Jerry said "check" while he was in turn, so he's not allowed to raise.'' ; invite : To lead a small card of the long suit.

J

; jan, jann : The equivalent of lurch or '' schneider'' in north German or Scandinavian games. It may mean losing without taking a trick, as in games of the

family, or scoring less than 1/4 of the points, as in games of the

Sjavs Sjavs is a Danish card game of the Schafkopf family that is played in two main variants. In Denmark, it is a 3-player game, played with a shortened pack of 20 cards; in the Faroe Islands, where it is very popular, it is a four-hand, partnership ...

family. ;

: The

ranking, naturally, between the

and the Ten. Also called the Knave or

in certain

. ;

: A circular

which forms the basic unit of scoring or payment, especially in French card games. Often used along with fiches and contrats which are worth more. See also

. ; Joker : A card, usually depicting a jester, used as the highest

or as a wild card.

K

; kibitzer : Onlooker at a

. ; kind : See

. ; King : The highest

, usually

between the

and the

. ; king card : The best card remaining unplayed of the suit. Also best card,

and master card. ; kitty :Additional cards dealt face down in some

. ; Knave : The

in certain

. Also

. ; knock : As the cutter, to tap the pack with a fist to indicate that you are satisfied with the

shuffle Shuffling is a procedure used to randomize a deck of playing cards to provide an element of chance in card games. Shuffling is often followed by a cut, to help ensure that the shuffler has not manipulated the outcome. __TOC__ Techniques Over ...

and are happy not to cut the cards. Common informal practice in social or family circles in European countries.

L

; Latin-suited pack : A pack of cards with the four suits:

Swords A sword is a cutting and/or thrusting weapon. Sword, Swords, or The Sword may also refer to: Places * Swords, Dublin, a large suburban town in the Irish capital * Swords, Georgia, a community in the United States * Sword Beach, code name for ...

, Batons,

and

. So-called because it originated in Spain and Italy. Compare with French and

. ; lay away : To discard after picking up the skat or

. ; lay down : To

. ; lay off : To add cards to another player's melds or

. ; lead # To play the first card of the

. # The card played first to the trick. # The privilege of leading e.g. "A has the lead" or "A is on lead". Bavarian pack-Suit of Leaves

;

: One of the four suits in a German pack of cards. Symbol: Bay gras

; led card : The first card played to a

. Sometimes called the leading card. ; led suit : The

of the first card played to a

. The suit of the lead card. ; lone hand, lone player : A player who chooses to play without the help of his partner's hand. ; long card : A card left in one's hand after all opponents are exhausted of that

. Similarly, long cards are the dregs of a suit which has been led several times and exhausted in the hands of other players. ; long suit : A

containing more than four cards e.g. at

Whist Whist is a classic English trick-taking card game which was widely played in the 18th and 19th centuries. Although the rules are simple, there is scope for strategic play. History Whist is a descendant of the 16th-century game of ''trump'' ...

or the suit with the most cards in a player's hand. ; loser # A player who has lost a

. # A losing card. ; losing card : A card that is unlikely to win a

. ; low card # A card of low

# A card of low value, especially in Tarot and Tarock games. ; lurch : A player is 'lurched' or 'in the lurch' in

Cribbage Cribbage, or crib, is a card game, traditionally for two players, that involves playing and grouping cards in combinations which gain points. It can be adapted for three or four players. Cribbage has several distinctive features: the cribbag ...

, Saunt or

Cassino Cassino () is a ''comune'' in the province of Frosinone, Southern Italy, at the southern end of the region of Lazio, the last city of the Latin Valley. Cassino is located at the foot of Monte Cairo near the confluence of the Gari and Liri rive ...

if they not only lose but fail to score a minimum number of points, typically half of a winning score. Being in the lurch typically costs double. Similar to schneider.

M

;

term, from the German ''Marsch'' or ''Durchmarsch''. To win every trick in a deal. The score for doing so. The same as

slam Slam, SLAM or SLAMS may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional elements * S.L.A.M. (Strategic Long-Range Artillery Machine), a fictional weapon in the ''G.I. Joe'' universe * SLAMS (Space-Land-Air Missile Shield), a fictional anti-ball ...

. ; make # Fulfil a

. # Name the

. ; maker : The player who names the

. Also

or contractor. ; master, master card : The best (i.e. highest) card left in a suit which has been played. Also best card,

or king card. : The highest card in play from a particular suit. ; matador : A top trump, sometimes with special privileges. However, in some

such as

Skwitz Skwitz was a 19th-century Austrian card game of the fishing type for 2 to 8 players that was said to be of English origin.Vanderheid (1866), p. 13–26. It may be a descendant of Cassino which it resembles. History The game appears as early as a ...

, it is not a

but a bonus-earning card. Any high trump. ; matsch # A

in certain Austrian or Bavarian

. # Failing to win at least a quarter of the points available in some German games. Equivalent to a schneider. ;

# Any scoring

of cards announced, shown or played, e.g. three of a kind or a

of three or more cards. A

of such a combination. # To make a meld. ; misère : A

or undertaking to lose every

. Also bettel, bettler or

null Null may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Computing * Null (SQL) (or NULL), a special marker and keyword in SQL indicating that something has no value * Null character, the zero-valued ASCII character, also designated by , often use ...

. ; mixed deal : A hand dealt wrongly. Or to make a mistake while dealing cards. ; mord : A

in certain Austrian or German

. ; multipliers : Factors by which the base value of a

(and sometimes any bonuses) are multiplied to determine the value of a

N

; natural : Without the use of a

wild Wild, wild, wilds or wild may refer to: Common meanings * Wild animal * Wilderness, a wild natural environment * Wildness, the quality of being wild or untamed Art, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Wild'' (2014 film), a 2014 A ...

. ; natural card : A card that is not

; natural order, natural ranking : The normal hierarchical sequence of cards within a suit. In a 52-card, French-suited pack the natural order is from Ace (high) to Two (low) i.e. A > K > Q > J > 10 … 2. In a 36-card German-suited pack, it is from Deuce ("Ace") to Seven i.e. D (A) > O > U > 10 … 7. Many games do not follow the natural order, for example, in

Ace-Ten games An Ace-Ten game is a type of card game, highly popular in Europe, in which the Aces and Tens are of particularly high value. Description Many of Europe's most popular card games feature the Ace-Ten scoring system, where the cards count as Ace = ...

the ranking is A > 10 > K > Q > J... or D (A) > 10 > K > O > U... ; natural suit : The suit that a card would naturally belong to if not designated as e.g. a trump ; negative game : A negative

or negative

is one in which the aim is to: # Avoid taking tricks # Lose every trick (as in ''Bettel'' or

) # Avoid taking the highest number of points (as in a ''Räuber'' in games like

Cego Cego is a Tarot game for three or four players played with eponymous German Tarot playing cards. The game was probably derived from the three-player Badenese tarot game of Dreierles after soldiers returned from the Iberian Peninsula during the Na ...

). ; next, next suit : The

of the same colour as the

e.g. in

. ; non-counter : A card which is not a

i.e. has no scoring value. ; null, null game # In games of the Skat family, a contract in which the declarer undertakes to lose every

. # In Swedish Whist, a game in which both sides aim to take the fewest number of tricks. ; numeral : A card for which the

is a number (Ace usually counts as 1 in this case), as opposed to the

. Also pip. See also

Pip (counting) Pips are small but easily countable items, such as the dots on dominoes and dice, or the symbols on a playing card that denote its suit and value. Dice On dice, pips are small dots on each face of a common six-sided die. These pips are typica ...

O

; Ober : The

usually ranking between the

and the Unter in a

. The equivalent of the

in a

. Formerly also Obermann ("overlord"). ; open # To make the first bid,

or move. # To make the first

bet Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

. # To make the first

of a

. "It was correct to open Diamonds..." ; opening lead : The first

of a

. ; outbid : To bid higher than an earlier

. Same as

, but distinct from

overbid The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

. ; ouvert(e) : A contract played with the player's hand of cards spread out face up on the table so it is visible to the other players ; overbid # A bid of more than the value of the

. #

Overcall In contract bridge, an overcall is a bid made after an opening bid has been made by an opponent; the term refers only to the first such bid. A ''direct'' overcall is such a bid made by the player seated immediately to the left of the opener, i.e ...

. # An unduly optimistic bid. ; overcall : To bid higher than an earlier

. May take the form of a suit overcall (bid a higher-value suit e.g. in

Preference In psychology, economics and philosophy, preference is a technical term usually used in relation to choosing between alternatives. For example, someone prefers A over B if they would rather choose A than B. Preferences are central to decision theo ...

), majority overcall (bid to take a higher number of tricks e.g. in

) or value overcall (bid to win more card points e.g. in

Binokel Binokel is a card game for two to eight players that originated in Switzerland as Binocle, but spread to the German state of Württemberg, where it is typically played with a Württemberg pattern pack. It is still popular in Württemberg, where i ...

) The name of such a bid. ; overs : Excess points in e.g.

. ; overshoot point : In

s, a

point Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...

in excess of the minimum needed to win the

. ; overtake : To play a card higher than the winning card played by your partner, unnecessary to win the

but necessary to gain the

. Not to be confused with

or play over. ; overtrick # To take more tricks than bid or contracted. # A trick exceeding the bid. ; overruff, overtrump : To play a

higher than any previously played to the

P

; pack : A complete set of cards. In English-speaking countries, a standard pack comprises 52

cards. In other countries, packs of 24, 32, 36, 40 or 48 cards are common as are

or Latin-suited packs. Also deck. ; packet : A portion of a pack, less than the whole pack. ; pair royal : Three cards of the same denomination (

). Also called a '

prial A set or group in card games is a scoring combination consisting of three or more playing cards of the same rank;Parlett (2008) p. 489. in some games, such as Bieten, a set may also comprise just two cards (a 'pair'). Description Sets are one o ...

' or ' triplet'. See

. ; partie : A

which requires a specified number of deals to decide it, especially at

. See also

. ; partner : Another player with whom one shares a common score, and with whom one therefore cooperates in

and

. ; partnership : Two or more players who play jointly and win or lose together. May be 'fixed', in which case the players play together for the entire session, or 'floating', in which case partners vary from deal to deal, sometimes called an

alliance An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

. Also called a

side Side or Sides may refer to: Geometry * Edge (geometry) of a polygon (two-dimensional shape) * Face (geometry) of a polyhedron (three-dimensional shape) Places * Side (Ainis), a town of Ainis, ancient Thessaly, Greece * Side (Caria), a town of an ...

team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson (academic), Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interde ...

. ; pass # In

, to make no bid. # In vying

to pass the privilege of

first. ; penalty : A score awarded for common violations of the rules of the

. It can be awarded either negatively to the violating player/partnership, or positively to their opponent(s) ; penalty card : A card that incurs a

, usually a minus score, e.g. the

Queen of Spades The queen of spades (Q) is one of 52 playing cards in a standard deck: the queen of the suit of spades (). In Old Maid and several games of the Hearts family, it serves as a single, undesirable card in the deck. Roles by game In the Hearts fa ...

and all hearts in

Black Lady Black Lady is an American card game of the Hearts group for three to six players and the most popular of the group. It emerged in the early 20th century as an elaboration of Hearts and was initially also called Discard Hearts. It is named after ...

. ; penny ante : A

played for insignificant stakes. ; picture card : Usually the same as

, but can include the Aces as well. ; pile : A set of cards placed on a surface so that they partially or completely overlap. Also stack. ; pip # A numeral. # A

symbol (e.g. , , , or Bay eichel

) on a card. # A

card point The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy) ...

point-trick games A trick-taking game is a card or tile-based game in which play of a '' hand'' centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called ''tricks'', which are each evaluated to determine a winner or ''taker'' of that trick. The object of such ...

. Not necessarily the same as the actual number of pips (symbols) on a pip card.

also have a pip value. ; pip card : See numeral. ; pip value : The numerical,

index Index (or its plural form indices) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Index (''A Certain Magical Index''), a character in the light novel series ''A Certain Magical Index'' * The Index, an item on a Halo megastru ...

or face value of a card. ; plain card : a card other than a

. ; plain suit : Any suit that is not a

. ; play # To contribute a card to a

. # To move a card to a place on the table (either from the players hand, or from elsewhere on the table), in

Patience games Patience (Europe), card solitaire or solitaire (US/Canada), is a genre of card games whose common feature is that the aim is to arrange the cards in some systematic order or, in a few cases, to pair them off in order to discard them. Most are inte ...

. # The card played or the move made. # The stage of the

during which the players'

hands A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each " ...

are depleted by plays to tricks or to a common pile, etc. The "rules of play" are the rules for playing tricks, etc. e.g. stating that players must follow suit if able, otherwise may play any card (as at

). #

Betting Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...

in general. ; play over : To play a higher card. : To

i.e. play a higher card of the same suit. Not to be confused with

or overtake. ; pone :US term for non-dealer in some two-player

e.g.

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

or the player on the dealer's right, who cuts the cards. ; pool : See pot. ; positional priority : The priority a player has by virtue of his position in relation to the

and direction of play. Normally forehand or

has the highest priority, followed by the other players in the order of play. So, for example, in an

if two players bid the same ranking

and

is clockwise, the player nearest the dealer's left hand usually has priority. Virapulla - IMG 7659

; pot # A container into which money or

are paid initially and during a

and from which the winnings are paid out. # The contents of the pot. An accumulation of chips, antes, bets, forfeits, etc., to win which is the object of the game. ; preference : A bid in the preferred suit. ; preferred suit, preference suit : A

that has

preference over the rest, as in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. ; prial : A 'pair royal'. A

of three cards of the same

. ; protection. : Cards that

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

others, normally of higher

. ; punter : Person who lays bets in a

Q

; quart : A

of four cards of the same suit. ; quart major : The Ace, King, Queen and Jack of one suit. ; Queen : The

ranking naturally between the

and the

or Knave. In Tarot and Tarock games, it ranks between the King and the

. ; quinte or quint : A

of five cards of the same suit. ; quinte major or quint major : The Ace, King, Queen, Jack and Ten of one suit. ; quinte minor or quint minor : The King, Queen, Jack, Ten and Nine of one suit. ; quitted trick : A

that has been taken and turned face down.

R

; raise # To name a higher

than one has called previously because one has been overcalled # To increase one's stake # To increase the game value ; rank : The position of a card relative to others in the same

. The order of the ranks depends on the

being played. ;

# Usually refers to the player who sits to the right of the dealer in a four-handed, clockwise game. However, in a three-hand

, rearhand is the

; the last active player to receive cards. Also called endhand. # The last player to the trick. Also said to be "in rearhand". ; redeal # A new

by the same

after an irregularity. #:A new

of some of the cards, e.g. the

. # The action of dealing again. ; redouble : To

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

, again, a bid that has already been doubled once. ; reduce : To shed one's

of deadwood e.g. in

. ; regular pack : A

pack of cards A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a fi ...

comprising suits each distinguished by a suit sign and divided into numeral and

, as opposed to a Tarot pack that has additional cards known variously as tarots, tarocks or

tarocchi Tarot games are card games played with tarot decks, that is, decks with numbered permanent trumps parallel to the suit cards. The games and decks which English-speakers call by the French name Tarot are called Tarocchi in the original Italian, ...

and which do not have suit signs, numerals and courts. ; renege # To

revoke In trick-taking card games, a revoke (or renege, or ) is a violation of the rules regarding the play of tricks serious enough to render the round invalid. A revoke is a violation ranked in seriousness somewhat below overt cheating, and is cons ...

. This is the most common usage. # To legally play a card of a

other than the led suit. # To legally withhold a high

when a lower trump is led. ; renounce # To fail to follow suit legally because one is void; a void. This is the most common usage. # Of a suit, void. Having none of the suit led."B" (1858), p. 24. # To play a card of a different suit from the

. May be legal or not, depending on the rules. ; return : To lead back, usually the suit that partner led. ; reversible : See double-ended. ; revoke # To fail to

when able to do so and the rules require it. Normally incurs a

. # To breach the rules of following suit, trumping,

heading Heading can refer to: * Heading (metalworking), a process which incorporates the extruding and upsetting processes * Headline, text at the top of a newspaper article * Heading (navigation), the direction a person or vehicle is facing, usually s ...

or going over. ; rob # To exchange a hand card for the trump turn-up. # To discard several cards in exchange for the remaining trumps in the pack. ; rotation : The direction of dealing,

and

playing Play is a range of Motivation#Incentive theories: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, intrinsically motivated activities done for recreational pleasure and enjoyment. Play is commonly associated with children and juvenile-level activities, but m ...

e.g. clockwise (to the left) is standard for American and English

. Anticlockwise (to the right) is common in traditional European games. ; round # The events between the

player's action, and the youngest player's action of the same type (i.e. deal, bid, play), inclusive. A phase of play in which everyone has the same opportunity to perform such an action. # A series of

in which each player has dealt only once. ; round game : One in which there are no

partnerships A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, business entity, businesses, interest-based organizations, schoo ...

and everyone plays for himself or herself. : One playable by an indefinite number of players, typically 3 to 7. ; royal card : See

. ; rubber : A match consisting of a number of

, typically three. ; ruff # To trump a suit i.e. when a non-trump was led. # An instance of ruffing. # Historically, to rob the

turnup. ; run : A combination of three or more playing cards with consecutive

values. Also called a

S

; sandbag : To withhold an action on a good hand in order to trap an opponent into greater loss. ; scat : See skat. ; schmear : See smear. ; schneider : When a player or team wins over 3/4 of the available card points in

, thus scoring a bonus. Typical of the Skat and

families. The team scoring less than 1/4 of the points is said to be ''schneidered'' or 'in ''schneider. The successful player or team is said to have won ''schneider''. See also lurch. ; schwarz : When a player or team wins every

of the

, thus scoring a

bonus Bonus commonly means: * Bonus, a Commonwealth term for a distribution of profits to a with-profits insurance policy * Bonus payment, an extra payment received as a reward for doing one's job well or as an incentive Bonus may also refer to: Plac ...

. The other side is said to be ''schwarzed''. Common in

of the Skat and

family. ; seat : Position relative to the

: for example, in bridge, the dealer's left-hand opponent is said to be in ''second seat''. ; second hand : The second player in turn to

or play. ; second turn : The turning over of the second card of the skat for trump, e.g. in

or Skat. ; see, seeing : To

hold Hold may refer to: Physical spaces * Hold (ship), interior cargo space * Baggage hold, cargo space on an airplane * Stronghold, a castle or other fortified place Arts, entertainment, and media * Hold (musical term), a pause, also called a Ferm ...

a higher bet in a vying game. ; see saw : See cross-ruff. ; selected suit : See

chosen suit The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy) ...

;

: Three or more cards adjacent in

. The adjectives ''ascending'' and ''descending'' may be applied (i.e. "building in ascending sequence" means "laying cards out so that each has the next highest rank to the previous one"). A sequence need not all be of the same

. Also run. ;

: Three or more cards of the same

. ; shed : To discard. ; short deck : See

short pack A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a fi ...

. ; short game : Any

in which not all the cards of a pack are put into play, e.g. ''kurzer'' or short

which is played with 24 cards. ; short suit : A suit with less than four cards, two cards or fewer than the average cards for the

. ; short pack, shortened pack : A set of cards that has been reduced in size from a full pack (normally of 52 cards) by the removal of a certain card or cards. ; shuffle : Rearrange (a deck of cards) by sliding the cards over each other quickly.(verb) : An act of shuffling a deck of cards. (noun) ; shut out : Defeated without a single point. ; side : See

. ; side card : A card of a side suit; a non-trump. ; side money : A bet in a side pot. ; side payment : When players are primarily playing for the stakes in a pot, this is a separate payment directly from one player's pocket to another, for example to reward a

. ; side pot : A pot that is separate from the main pot, either for specific bonuses or used when the main pot reaches a certain limit. ; side strength : A player with side strength has high cards in side suits. ; side suit : A suit that is not the

; plain suit. ; signal : Any convention of play whereby the team members properly give each other information as allowed by the rules. ; single, singly : The basic, usually lowest, value of a game is described as 'single'. A game is won 'singly' if its value is not increased by bonus factors such as winning schneider which would double the score or winning schwarz which might quadruple it. ; single-ended, single-figured, single-headed : Of a playing card, being designed so that it can only be properly read one way up. There are usually no indices and the courts depict full length figures. Today they have been largely replaced by double-ended or reversible cards. ; singleton : Only one card of a

. ; skat or scat #

Widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word ...

; extra cards dealt to the table which may be used for exchanging later. Also blind. # Note that, in German, 'skat' can also mean

i.e. lacking any cards of a given suit and therefore 'seeking the skat' means looking for an opponent's void suit. ; slam : Winning every trick. Sometimes called a 'grand slam', with a 'little slam' being every trick bar one. Also called a march (e.g.

), mord (e.g. Brandle and

Grasobern Grasobern, Grasoberl, Grasoberln, Graseberla, Grünobern, Lauboberl or Laubobern is a card game that was once commonly played in Old Bavaria, especially in the old counties of Bad Aibling and Landkreis Rosenheim, Rosenheim, and is still popular in ...

), durch or durchmarsch, (e.g. Skat and

), matsch,

tout A tout is any person who solicits business or employment in a persistent and annoying manner (generally equivalent to a ''solicitor'' or '' barker'' in American English, or a ''spruiker'' in Australian English). An example would be a person who ...

vole Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of low-c ...

. ; sleeping : Said of cards that are not in play because e.g. they are in the unused part of the pack. See

active Active may refer to: Music * ''Active'' (album), a 1992 album by Casiopea * Active Records, a record label Ships * ''Active'' (ship), several commercial ships by that name * HMS ''Active'', the name of various ships of the British Royal ...

. ; sluff or slough : To discard. To play a card of little or no value. ; smear or schmear : To play a high-scoring card to a

if it is likely to be won by one's

, especially in

or Sheepshead. Also fatten. ; sneak : Lead a

in order to be able to

(

ruff Ruff may refer to: Places *Ruff, Virginia, United States, an unincorporated community *Ruff, Washington, United States, an unincorporated community Other uses *Ruff (bird) (''Calidris pugnax'' or ''Philomachus pugnax''), a bird in the wader fami ...

) the second round of the

. ; soft score : A game played for 'soft score' – as opposed to

is one played for anything other than money, usually points. The score may be chalked on a slate, recorded with pencil and paper. Equally, counters, tokens or chips or even matches may be used. ; solo # A hand contract i.e. one played without the aid of the skat or

. # A contract played alone against the combined efforts of all other players. ; soloist : Player who plays a

solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

. ; sous-forcer :See

underforce The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy) ...

Suit of Spades-Écarté ranking-52-card pack

; Spades : One of the four suits in a

of cards. Symbol: Naipe espadas

; spot card : See numeral ; squeeze : In trick-taking

, a player is 'squeezed' if he has to weaken himself in either of 2 suits, but has no way of deciding which. ; stack : A pile of cards, less than the whole pack, placed on top of each other and usually face down. ; stake # The money, counters or chips that a player places during a

. # The agreed monetary amount to be paid for each point,

. ; staking board : A board with compartments, cards or marked areas on which stakes are laid during a game as in Newmarket or

. ; staking layout : A marked-out area on the table or a set of face-up cards on which stakes are placed. ; stand # Refuse to draw additional cards. # Accept the turn-up as

. # Remain in the current

or pot, as opposed to drop. ; stay # Remain in the current

or pot, as opposed to drop. # Refuse to draw additional cards. Also stick. ; stick : Stand fast and refuse to draw additional cards. ; stock : A pile of cards, face down, which are left over after setting up the rest of the

(i.e. dealing hands, setting up other layout areas) and will be used in the rest of the game. Also

. ; stop, stop card : A card which, when played, ends a

of cards on the table or a card that is undealt whose absence prevents the completion of a sequence. Gives its name to the Stops family of

. ; Stops family, Stops group : A family or group of matching games in which cards must be played in ascending

and usually in

. The aim is to be first to

shed A shed is typically a simple, single-story roofed structure that is used for hobbies, or as a workshop in a back garden or on an allotment. Sheds vary considerably in their size and complexity of construction, from simple open-sided ones de ...

all one's cards. The cards out of play or which terminate the sequence are called

stops Stop may refer to: Places *Stop, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the United States * Stop (Rogatica), a village in Rogatica, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina Facilities * Bus stop * Truck stop, a type of rest stop for truck dri ...

. Examples include

Pope Joan Pope Joan (''Ioannes Anglicus'', 855–857) was, according to legend, a woman who reigned as pope for two years during the Middle Ages. Her story first appeared in chronicles in the 13th century and subsequently spread throughout Europe. The s ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, Newmarket and Yellow Dwarf. ;

: Any of the sets of cards in a pack that share the same pip symbol. For examples see

and Latin-suited pack. 3deespadas

; sweetener # An additional stake

anted Anted is the name of the coins issued by Antedios Antedios or Anted
homepages.rpi.edu was an ancient k ...

to the pot in Poker to encourage players to stay in the game. # A small bet in Poker not meant to cause an opponent to fold but to build up the pot.''Pot Sweetener''
at pokerstrategy.com. Retrieved 23 April 2021. # An agreed amount that everyone pays into the pot following an auction in which all passed e.g. in

. The pot goes to the next player to win a bid. ; sweep # In

fishing game A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ...

s to clear the table by capturing all the table cards upon it at that time. Usually earns a bonus. # The cards so captured. ; swing # Lead the master card of a suit. # One of an unbroken

of cards from the top of the suit downwards. ;

: One of the four suits in a Latin-suited pack of cards. Symbol: Seme spade carte bergamasche

T

; tableau : Layout of face-up table cards in

like Yellow Dwarf, Zwicker and games of the

family. See

Glossary of patience terms Games of patience, or (card) solitaires as they are usually called in North America, have their own 'language' of specialised terms such as "building down", "packing", "foundations", "talon" and "tableau". Once learnt they are helpful in de ...

. ;

:The undealt portion of the pack which will be used in the rest of the

. Also

;

Tarocchi Tarot games are card games played with tarot decks, that is, decks with numbered permanent trumps parallel to the suit cards. The games and decks which English-speakers call by the French name Tarot are called Tarocchi in the original Italian, ...

Trump cards A trump is a playing card which is elevated above its usual rank in trick-taking games. Typically, an entire suit is nominated as a ''trump suit''; these cards then outrank all cards of plain (non-trump) suits. In other contexts, the terms ''tru ...

in tarot games of Italian origin. Also

from other countries. ;

: A

in tarot games of Austrian or German origin. Also

Tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

from other countries. Also spelt Taroc or Tarok. ;

: A

in tarot games of French origin. Also

from other countries. ; team : See

. ; tenace : A combination of high cards not in sequence. ''Major tenace'': A-Q (or K-C in Tarock games); ''minor tenace'': K-J (or Q-J in Tarock games); ''double tenace'': A-Q-10 (or K-C-10/A in Tarock games). ; throw in : To return cards to the

if, for example, no-one makes a bid or if the cards are misdealt. ; throw off : To discard or smear. ; touching : Said of cards that are adjacent in

. ; tout : Winning all the tricks in European games. Also durch, durchmarsch,

, matsch,

. ; Trey : The Three of any

. Also 'three-spot'. ;

: See

Trick-taking game A trick-taking game is a card or tile-based game in which play of a ''hand'' centers on a series of finite rounds or units of play, called ''tricks'', which are each evaluated to determine a winner or ''taker'' of that trick. The object of such g ...

. A set of cards played by each player in turn, during the

of a

. ; triplet : Three of a kind. ; tripleton : Three cards of a

in the hand. ;

# A privileged card whose trick-taking power is greater than any plain suit card. # The

. # A card in the special suit of

found in

tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

packs such as the

Tarot Nouveau The Bourgeois Tarot deck is a mid-19th century pattern of tarot cards of German origin that is still used for playing card games today in western Europe and Canada. It is not designed for divinatory purposes.trump Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. T ...

after a plain suit has been

led A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...

. Also

. ;

: A privileged

in which, in the current

, all its cards

higher than any

plain In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...

(=non-trump) card. ; turn the corner : Said of a sequence of cards when the top card (typically the Ace or King) is preceded by high cards on one side and low cards on the other e.g. 3-2-A-K-Q-J. ; turn-up : A card turned up at the start of a

to determine the

U

; ultimo : Winning the last

with the lowest

or, sometimes, with a King. ; unchosen suit : In games of the

Karnöffel Group Karnöffel is a trick-taking card game which probably came from the upper-German language area in Europe in the first quarter of the 15th century. It first appeared listed in a municipal ordinance of Nördlingen, Bavaria, in 1426 among the games ...

, a suit, usually ranking in the natural order, most of all of whose cards have no special privileges, in contrast to the chosen suits. Sometimes called an unselected suit. ; underforce or under-force :To answer a card with one of the same

, but inferior value to those remaining in hand; e.g. putting the Nine of Clubs on the Ten, having the Ace in hand. Also under-force, under-play or sous-forcer. ; underlead : To lead a low card when holding the top card or cards in a suit. ; underplay or under-play # To

with a lower card when holding a higher one; hold up; refuse to

. # See

. ; undershoot point : In

s, a

shy of the minimum needed to win the

. ; undertrick # To fall short of the declared number of tricks. # A trick short of the bid. ; unguarded : Unprotected by another, usually lower, card of the same suit. See also blank. ; unload : To get rid of dangerous cards from one's

; unselected suit : See unchosen suit. ; Unter : The

usually ranking between the Ober and the Ten in a

. The equivalent of the

in a

. Formerly also Untermann ("underling"). ; upcard # A card laid on the table face-up. # The top card of a pile, turned face up.

V

; Valet : The

in certain

. Also Knave. ; value : See

; variant : A game version whose aim, mechanism of play, equipment or tactics are sufficiently different for it to be viewed as a separate, albeit related, game. ; variation # A game version in which there are minor rule differences, but in which the aim, mechanism of play and tactics remain the same. # A minor rule difference. ; vie, vying : To claim you have, or will have, the best

and stake money on it. Vying includes an element of bluffing. ;

: Having no card of a given

. Also blank suit. : To discard all cards of a given

. ; vole : Winning all the tricks in some English and European games. Also durch, durchmarsch,

, matsch,

W

; wastepile or waste-pile : A pile of

discards Discards are the portion of a catch of fish which is not retained on board during commercial fishing operations and is returned, often dead or dying, to the sea. The practice of discarding is driven by economic and political factors; fish which are ...

or cards that a player is unable to play. Also

. ; whitewashed : Losing without scoring a point. See also schwarz. ;

: American term for a blind or skat. Hand of cards dealt face down on the table at the start of play that may subsequently be used by players to exchange cards. ; wild card : A card that may be designated by the owner to represent any other card. A Joker is often used as a wild card, but can also have other uses.

Y

; youngest : The last player to play before the

player's second turn. Some family

will use ''

'' and ''youngest'' to refer to the players' actual ages.

Game-specific glossaries

A few games or families of games have enough of their own specific terminology to warrant their own glossaries: *

Blackjack Blackjack (formerly Black Jack and Vingt-Un) is a casino banking game. The most widely played casino banking game in the world, it uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as Twenty-One. This fami ...

. See the glossary of blackjack terms. * Bridge. See the

glossary of contract bridge terms These terms are used in contract bridge, using duplicate or rubber scoring. Some of them are also used in whist, bid whist, the obsolete game auction bridge, and other trick-taking games. This glossary supplements the Glossary of card game terms. ...

which covers

contract bridge Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other around a table. Millions o ...

duplicate bridge Duplicate bridge is a variation of contract bridge where the same set of bridge deals (i.e. the distribution of the 52 cards among the four hands) are played by different competitors, and scoring is based on relative performance. In this way, eve ...

, and

auction bridge The card game auction bridge was the third step in the evolution of the general game of bridge. It was developed from bridge whist in 1904, possibly by 1900. Auction bridge was the precursor to contract bridge. Its predecessors were whist and brid ...

; some of the terms are also used in

whist Whist is a classic English trick-taking card game which was widely played in the 18th and 19th centuries. Although the rules are simple, there is scope for strategic play. History Whist is a descendant of the 16th-century game of ''trump'' ...

, bid whist, and other

s. * Patience or Solitaire. See the

glossary of patience and solitaire terms Games of patience, or (card) solitaires as they are usually called in North America, have their own 'language' of specialised terms such as "building down", "packing", "foundations", "talon" and "tableau". Once learnt they are helpful in de ...

. *

. See the

glossary of poker terms The following is a glossary of poker terms used in the card game of poker. It supplements the glossary of card game terms. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon poker slang terms. This is not intended to be ...

. *

. See

Schafkopf language The Bavarian card game of Schafkopf has such a plethora of special words, terms and phrases that it is described as a Schafkopf language (german: Schafkopf-Sprache) which is often unintelligible to outsiders. The language ranges from associative ...

. * Skat. See the glossary of Skat terms.

Footnotes

References

Literature

• _ (1881). ''Ausführliche anleitung zum Deutschtarokspielen''. Munich: Cäsar Fritsch. 88 pp. * * * * * *

Dummett, Sir Michael Sir Michael Anthony Eardley Dummett (27 June 1925 – 27 December 2011) was an English people, English academic described as "among the most significant British philosophers of the last century and a leading campaigner for racial tolerance and ...

(1980). ''The Game of Tarot''. London: Duckworth. * * * * * *

Goren, Charles Charles Henry Goren (March 4, 1901 – April 3, 1991) was an American bridge player and writer who significantly developed and popularized the game. He was the leading American bridge personality in the 1950s and 1960s – or 1940s and 1950s, as " ...

(1950). ''Goren's Hoyle''. NY: Greystone. * * * * * Pardon, George Frederick (1864). ''The Card Player''. London: Routledge, Warne & Routledge. *

Parlett, David David Parlett (born 18 May 1939 in London) is a games scholar, historian, and translator from South London, who has studied both card games and board games. He is the president of the British Skat Association. His published works include many pop ...

(1979). ''The Penguin Book of Patience''. London: Penguin. * * * * * * * {{Non trick-taking card games Card game terms Glossary