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!