Don’t be left behind when playing at the casino! Learn the vocabulary of games of chance as you learn the games. This is important to understand so that you don’t feel like a newbie when playing board games.

TWENTY ONE

Basic strategy – Plays you must make to maximize your advantage

Burn letters – Cards removed after the deck.

Bust / Break – Overcoming a total hand of 21

Card counting – Memorize cards played with an assigned value

Color – Collect your chips

Bend – To double your initial bet after the initial 2-card deal

Even money – Cashing your bet for a 1/1 payout when you have a blackjack against a dealer ace

Cards with figures – Jacks, Queens, Kings (aka Picture Cards)

First base – First seat to the dealer’s left

Hit / Draw – Asking for another card to add to your hand

Hole card – The dealer’s face down card

Sure – An additional bet for the player when the dealer shows an ace.

Pat Hand – A had a value of at least 17 points

Push / tie – Player and dealer with the same total hands

Shoe – A device used to store and dispense cards.

Soft hand A hand with an ace counted as 11 or 1

Stiff hand – A hand with little chance of winning if you get hit

Give up – Give you your hand to lose half your bet

Third base – Last seat to the dealer’s right

Card up – Dealer’s first card dealt face up

DICES

Any Craps – A total of dice of 2, 3 or 12

Great red – a bet on the Any seven box

Vans – When the dice add up to 12

Covered dice – Twisted dice

Cold Table – When most shooters aren’t winning

Come Bet – A bet placed after the point is established

Exit Roll – First roll of dice in a round

Don’t come to bet – A bet placed after the point is established (the result is opposite of the Come bet)

Don’t pass the bet – Betting against the shooter before Exit roll

Free fees – An additional bet behind the Pass line bet taken in true odds

Jorge – A good tip

Hard way – A 4,6,8,10 thrown in pairs

Place bet Betting that a place number (4-6, 8-10) will be rolled before a 7

Point number – One of the numbers 4-6, 8-10 made on the output roll

Press A Bet – To double your bet amount

Betting proposal – (AKA Prop Bets) one roll and Hard way bets

Right Gambler – Betting the shooter will win

Seven out – When a 7 is rolled before the point number

Shooter – Player currently rolling the dice

Snake Eyes – When the dice add up to 2

Rigid – A poor dumper

Toke – An advice given to the dealer.

Vigorish – ( AKA Vig) commission taken by the house

Wrong gambler – Betting the shooter will lose

Me – The number 11 (aka Yo-Leven)

POKER (TEXAS HOLD’EM STYLE)

Aces up – A pair of aces with another pair

Everything inside – Betting all your remaining chips

In view of – The initial bet before the deal begins

Belly Buster – An interior staircase project

Big Slick – An ace and a king

Blinds – 2 forced bets before the cards are dealt (small blind and big blind)

Boat – Slang for a Full house

Broadway – Highest possible ladder with mixed suits, 10, J, Q, K, A

Button – A disc placed in front of a player acting as a dealer.

Bullets – A pair of aces

Call – To match the current bet

Check – Postpone placing a bet until another player does

Cowboys – Slang for a pair of kings

Dead hand – A hand with no chance of winning

Donkey / Fish – A bad player

Dead drawing – A hand that will lose even if it improves

Flop – The first 3 community cards

Flush – 5 cards of the same suit

Full house – (AKA Boat ) 3 of one type and 2 of another

Kicker – The highest unpaired card in a hand.

Ladies – Slang for a pair of queens

Muck – Discarded hands upside down

Walnuts – Highest possible hand

Overcard – One card higher than another

ATVs 4 of a kind

Rag (s) – Cards that do not add value to your hand

Rainbow – Cards with different suits

River – The fifth and final community card

Rounder – One who makes a living playing cards

Royal flush – Highest possible hand, a suited 10, J, Q, K, A

Set / Travel – 3 of a kind

Small pile – Have the least amount of chips on the table

Color ladder – 5 cards of the same suit in sequential order

He says – Behavior that gives other players information about how you might play your hand

Tight – Someone who only plays premium hands

Inclination – Desperate to hit losses again, causing bad decisions

Turn – The fourth community card

Under the gun – First player to bet after the big blind

Wheel – The lowest possible ladder with mixed suits A, 2, 3, 4,5

Wiring – A pair dealt on the first 2 cards.

So there you have it. Learning this lingo will help you on your way to becoming a seasoned responsible gamer. Good luck!