Poker Terms
For beginners especially, poker terms can seem confusing, and even downright silly if you take the time to sit down and think about it. However, since you’re learning to play poker, not to think about the various poker terms, you might want to contain your thinking time to something more constructive, like figuring out what these terms mean.
If you start out with the poker game off Texas Holdem for example, you’ll find your ears being assaulted by all manner of odd poker terms such as the Flop, the Turn, the River, or maybe even the Big Blind and the Small Blind. Or, you might have heard of poker hand rankings, calling, raising, or even folding,
Some poker terms are used commonly throughout every game and some of the latter ones are used across the board in other types of poker games as well. You won't have a hard time learning these terms and their particular meanings. The situation only gets difficult when you’re trying to remember what all of these poker terms mean, along with the various hand rankings, when you’re playing in a real poker game.
That said, if you know only the basics to begin with, you’ll find that over time, you pick up or become more familiar with the other poker terms.
Let's start off with two very important terms: with the Big Blind and the Small Blind. In Texas Holdem, these are the two players who are on the immediate left of the dealer. These two individuals are the ones who post the initial bets, which, for the Big Blind will be the lowest amount in the betting tier, and for the Small Blind will be either half or a third of this amount.
The Dealer is the person who deals the cards for that particular round, and with Texas Holdem the dealer Button goes around the table so that each player will in turn become the dealer.
The next two poker terms, the Turn, and the River, are also known as Fourth Street, and Fifth Street. These are the two remaining Community Cards which are dealt separately after the Flop. A round of betting separates these two cards being dealt.
The Hole cards, are the two cards which are the player’s own two cards. They can be used only by him/ her. These are also known in poker terms as the Pocket cards. The Flop, is the first three cards which are dealt face up onto the table and they are also known in poker terms as Community Cards.
There are many more poker terms that you should learn. They include calling, where you call someone’s bet or in other words you equal it; raising, where you raise the bet; and folding, where you fold your hand; and hand, which is the cards you have with you.
I find poker terms to be a particularly fascinating subject. If you are interested in playing poker you will come across many more fancy terms as time goes by. If you ever need help with poker terms you can look them up in some internet glossaries easily.
However, be aware that poker language isn't the only language that matters when you are playing poker. Apart from poker language you should also pay close attention to the player's body language (e.g. their faces).