Blackjack Glossary
This Blackjack Player’s Virtual Glossary is intended to provide players of all calibers with a well-written, accurate reference to help explain the interesting vocabulary the average gambler may encounter in the Blackjack world.
Most of the words you will find in the Blackjack tournament player’s universe are included here in this glossary. In addition to adding to your knowledge of the lingo, you may also pick up on a few hints and tops on how to become a better Blackjack player and win some money.
Learning the language of your preferred sport will not only help you to understand and enjoy it, but it will also make you an all-around better player.
(Please Note: The words he, his, him, and himself, as used in this glossary, are intended to apply to all genders.)
Action: Term used throughout gambling in general that refers to the total amount of money wagered within a certain timeframe.
10 bets of $20.00 each amount to $200.00 of action.
Action can also refer to a player’s decision during a game. If a player appears unaware that it is his turn, the dealer may ask for the player’s action.
Active Player: Player who is sitting at the table and participating in the current hand, as opposed to someone who is occupying a seat but not participating.
Alpo: Player who is considered the least likely to win. Also can be considered the puppy, dog, or underdog.
Anchor: At a Blackjack table, the person furthest to the button holder’s right.
Back Counting: To count cards at a Blackjack tournament table before sitting down to play. The purpose of this is to wait for the odds to be more favorable to a player. Usually this is done standing behind active players at the table.
Balanced Count: Any counting system in Blackjack that begins at zero when the cards are shuffled and ends again at zero when all the cards have been in play.
Bad Beat: A loss that occurs when least expected. Usually happens when a team having a strong lead over another team suddenly loses by a hair, or a Blackjack hand that is an underdog suddenly beating the stronger hand. Expect the losing player to comment on how the hand was “dumb luck”.
Banker: The dealer or player who handles the money at the table and books the action of the bettors at a card game.
Bankroll: A player’s total amount of chips.
Basic Strategy: Previously developed calculated decisions known to increase a player’s chance of beating house in the long run.
Basic Strategy (Blackjack): Previously developed calculated decisions known to increase a player’s chance of winning a hand at Blackjack.
Bet: The amount of money wagered by a gambler on a hand, game, or sport.
Bet Spread: The ratio of the maximum bet to minimum bet. A game in which the maximum bet is $30.00 and the minimum bet is $3.00 has a 10:1 bet spread.
Betting Limit: The minimum or maximum amount of money a player can wager at once. The player cannot bet less than the minimum or more than the maximum.
Blackjack: Specific occurrence when a player is initially dealt a hand comprised of only an ace and a card with a value of 10 for a combined value of 21. Blackjack is an automatic win.
BR: Abbreviation for bankroll.
Buck: Wager of $100.00
Bust: When a player’s total card value goes over 21. Also known as “breaking 21.” A bust is an automatic loss.
Card Counting: Keeping track of all cards that have been dealt since the previous shuffle. Successful card counting can help a player increase his odds of winning because he can approximate the odds of certain cards being dealt as the game progresses.
Card Shark: An avid card player; an expert; a card game connoisseur.
Card Weight: The value assigned to a card in a counting system which is added to the count as each new card is drawn. Card weights are usually small integer values such as -1, +1, or +2.
Case: The last remaining card of its type in a deck. For example, a case ten would be the last ten in the deck.
Cashier’s Cage: Often referred to as he “cage”, it is a place in the casino where players go to exchange their chips for cash, cash checks, or arrange credit.
Check: Term for a chip in casino gambling. Also used by poker players to signify that they do not wish to bet on a round of cards but that they will remain in the game with the option to call or raise later in the betting round.
Chips: Round tokens used in tournaments.
Cold: Used to describe a person who is on a losing streak.
Count: A player’s estimate of how favorable or non-favorable the remaining cards in the deck may be.
Counter: A player who counts cards to help estimate odds.
Crack: To beat a big hand in a card game.
Deal: To distribute cards to the players.
Dealer: Person designated to deal the cards.
Dime: In wagering terms, $1000.00
Discard Tray: A depository to the dealer’s right hand side that holds all cards that have been discarded.
Dollar: In wagering terms, $100.00
Dollar Bet: A player’s wager of $100.00
Double Bet: A wager that is twice the player’s usual amount.
Double Down: To double your wager in Blackjack in exchange for only one card. To Double Down must be a player’s first and only action on that hand.
Down Card: A card that has been dealt face down.
Due For: A term used to describe a player or team who is said to be overdue for a win or loss. The term can also be used to refer to a player who is overdue for a good hand. For many players, the “due for” strategy is very popular.
Edge: An advantage one player or team has over another player or team, or the advantage the casino has on a wager.
Even Money (Blackjack): A term used when the player buys insurance even when the player is holding a blackjack. Doing this will result in a net gain of one bet. In some casinos, the player may still be paid without having bought insurance (See insurance).
Face Cards: In a deck or combination of decks, the Jack, Queen, or King of any suit.
Favorite: The player or team in any game or sport that is the most wagered on, most talented, or most likely to win.
Firing: The act of wagering large amounts. For example a player who bets large sums of money is said to be “firing”.
First Base: The first position the dealer will distribute cards to; the first occupied seat on the dealer’s left.
Flat Bet: An unchanging bet on multiple consecutive hands. If a player makes a constant bet of $10.00 on each hand, the player is making a flat bet of ten dollars.
Going Down: Losing a number of wagers.
Green: The most common color used for the $25 chips.
Grinder: A player who consistently bets small amounts of money.
Hand: The cards a player is holding.
Hard Hand: A hand in Blackjack in which the total value of the cards totals eleven without an ace, or a hand in which an ace is valued at one and not eleven. Also referred to as “hard total”.
Hit (Blackjack): When a player indicates the need for a card, it is the term for the card dealt by the dealer. Usually the player will say to the dealer “hit me” which informs the dealer that the player’s action is to draw another card.
Holding Your Own: Breaking even; neither gaining money nor losing money throughout one or more wagers.
Hole-Card: Any card dealt face-down. Most commonly refers to the dealer’s down-card.
Hot: A player who has been winning consecutive wagers. Also used to refer to a slot machine that pays out frequently.
House: The establishment that controls and oversees the games.
Insurance: An additional wager totaling no more than one half the original bet (only allowed when the dealer is showing an ace as his up-card). This side bet safeguards the player from the dealer’s possible natural 21 or Blackjack. Insurance wins 2:1 if the dealer has a natural, causing the player to break even on the bet. If the dealer does not have a natural, the player loses the insurance.
Layout: The surface of a gaming table. The table has designated imprinted areas where bets can be placed.
Limit: The maximum allowable wager.
Lock: A situation in which a win is very easy.
Longshot: An extreme underdog.
Loyalty Points: Credits earned by playing at our site that can be applied toward prizes.
Natural: A hand in Blackjack in which 21 is reached with only two cards, achieved by obtaining an ace and a face card, or an ace and a ten. Also known in Baccarat as a two-card hand totaling eight or nine.
Nickel: In wagering terms, $500.00.
Nickels: Term used in casinos for chips with $5.00 value.
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Odds: The ration between the amount of payout and the amount the player has to bet to receive the payout. For example, odds of -140 would signify the player would have to bet $100 in order to win $140. Odds of +140 would signify the player would have to bet $140 in order to win $100.
Pat Hand: A Blackjack hand worth no less than 17 points.
Payoff: The amount a player wins from their wager.
Player: A participant in a tournament or game.
Point Count: A card counting term that represents the value of the count at the end of a hand.
Point Total: The total value of the cards a player is holding.
Press: To bet more than usual.
Press a Bet: To double the usual bet.
Pressing: To wager winnings from previous hands in addition to the original bet.
Puppy: Player who is considered the least likely to win. Also can be considered the Alpo, dog, or underdog.
Push: When neither the player nor his opposition wins any money. Both sides essentially tie. In Blackjack, a push occurs when both the dealer and the player have hands with the same point total (except in tables where a natural 21 beats a 21 of three or more cards).
Quarters: Term used in casinos for chips with $25.00 value.
Rank: A card’s numerical value.
Red: The most common color used for the $5 chips.
Rich Deck: Term used for the remaining cards in a deck that have an higher concentration of face cards and aces.
Round of Play: Period between the removal of the first card from the shuffling device or shoe, and the drawing of the last card. After having drawn the last card, the dealer announces a result and, if applicable, distributes winnings.
Running Count: The count of the cards that have been drawn since the beginning of the round of play. The running count is updated at the end of each hand.
Session: A series of plays during a gambling game.
Settlement: The final stage after a hand is won, lost, or tied. At this point, the dealer either takes the player’s chips, distributes chips to winning players, or indicates a push and exchanges no chips with the player.
Shoe: A rectangular box of wood or plastic that holds multiple decks of cards and enables the dealer to draw one card at a time with ease. A shoe can hold up to eight 52-card decks.
Short: Slang for Alpo, puppy, dog, or underdog. Often expressed as “the short”.
Short Stack: The smallest stack of chips being bet among a group of players. For example, if a player has a $10 stack on the table and the other players have over $100 in front of them, the $10 stack is the short stack.
Shuffle: To mix the order of the cards at the beginning of a round of play. Shuffling is usually done by the dealer.
Shuffle Tracking: Method used by card counters to anticipate which sections of the deck/shoe will favor the player. Shuffle tracking involves studying the dealer’s method of shuffling the cards in addition to studying the previous deck/shoe.
Shuffling Device: A machine approved by the Casino Control Authority used to mix the order of the cards in a Blackjack game.
Side Count: A count apart from the main count. Side counts usually only involve one card face. For example, a ten side count.
Soft Hand: A hand in Blackjack that contains an ace in which the ace has a value of eleven points. You can always hit on a soft card without busting.
Split Hand: A hand in Blackjack that is created when two equal cards are split into two separate hands, i.e., Jack of spades and Jack of diamonds. The split hand is played as two separate hands. The player must add a new bet to the resulting new hand.
Spread Limit: Typically from $2.00 to $6.00, a betting structure that allows a player to wager any amount within the range on every betting round. The player may bet as little as $2 or as much as $6.
Stand: Action in Blackjack where a player refrains from drawing another card. Once a player stands, their turn is over and action proceeds to the next player, or if there are no more players, to the dealer.
Standoff: A tie between players’ cards. Also a tie between one or more players and the house. When in reference to a wager, it shall neither win nor lose.
Star: A rating given to certain players who perform at a high level.
Stiff: A Blackjack hand between 12 and 16 that is not a pat hand, and may bust if the player hits. Chances of winning a stiff hand are low.
Strategy Variation: A change in a player’s game strategy based on their card count.
Square: An inexperienced player.
Surrender: A strategic play in which a player forfeits their hand, sacrificing half the bet as opposed to continuing with their hand and possibly losing the whole bet. However, if the dealer has a natural 21, the player loses the whole bet.
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Tapped Out: State in which a player has no more money or broke.
Ten Poor: Deck or shoe that has low concentration of tens and face cards.
Ten Rich: Deck or shoe that has high concentration of tens and face cards.
Third Base: At a Blackjack table, the last player to the button’s right.
True Count: An adjustment made to the running count that accounts for the cards remaining in the deck or shoe. The true count is derived by dividing the running count by the number of decks remaining or half-decks.
Unbalanced Count: A count that does not begin or end at a zero value. Red seven is an example of an unbalanced count.
Underdog: Player who is considered the least likely to win. Also can be considered the Alpo, dog, or puppy.
Under the Gun: A position in which the player will perform the first action on a round.
Unit: The dollar amount of a basic bet.
Up-Card: In Blackjack, the card which the dealer draws that is shown face-up for all players to see. Many experienced players base their action on value of the dealer’s up-card.
Victory Points: Accumulate Victory Points to play in special free games.
Void: Null; no result.
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