Poker Glossary: Streets, Actions, Positions, and Strategy Terms

Hearing limp, 3-bet, c-bet, or nuts in a video or a home game? This glossary groups common Texas Hold'em terms by topic — hand flow, actions, positions, hand types, strategy, odds, and table formats — with a short plain-English definition for each. Beginners can start with the first three groups; experienced players can jump to strategy and odds.

Hand flow (start here)

Term	Meaning
Hole cards	Your two private cards that only you can see.
Community cards / board	Shared cards on the table (up to five).
Preflop	The betting round after hole cards are dealt, before any community cards.
Flop	The first three community cards dealt together, and that betting round.
Turn	The fourth community card (fourth street).
River	The fifth and final community card (fifth street).
Showdown	Remaining players reveal hands after river betting ends.
Pot	All chips put into the hand.
Side pot	Extra pot formed when someone is all-in and others put in more; only eligible players contest it.
Blinds	Forced bets posted before cards are dealt (small blind and big blind).
Ante	A small forced chip from every player each hand in some formats (separate from blinds).
Burn card	In live games, a discarded card before dealing each street; online software usually randomizes without a visible burn.

Betting actions

Term	Meaning
Check	Pass without putting chips in when nobody has bet yet this street.
Bet	First chips into the pot on a street.
Call	Match the current amount.
Raise	Increase the current amount above a call.
Fold	Surrender the hand; chips already in stay in the pot.
All-in / shove	Put all remaining chips into the pot.
Limp	Preflop: enter by only calling the big blind (no raise).
Open / open raise	The first voluntary raise into an unraised pot preflop.
3-bet / 4-bet	A re-raise after an open is a 3-bet; another raise is a 4-bet.
Check-raise	Check first, then raise after someone bets.
String bet	Live foul: putting chips in in multiple motions for a raise; rooms often rule it only a call.

When each action is legal and how large a raise must be: betting rules. All-in and side pots: all-in guide.

Positions

Term	Abbrev	Meaning
Button / dealer	BTN	Seat with the dealer button; acts last after the flop.
Small blind	SB	First seat left of the button.
Big blind	BB	Second seat left of the button.
Under the gun	UTG	First to act preflop (left of the big blind).
Middle position	MP	Seats between early and late position.
Hijack	HJ	Seat right of the cutoff.
Cutoff	CO	Seat right of the button.
In position / out of position	IP / OOP	Acting after (IP) or before (OOP) an opponent after the flop.

Who posts and who acts first: blinds page. Seat names in more detail: position guide. What to open by seat: starting hands and preflop actions.

Cards and hand types

Term	Meaning
Pocket pair	Two hole cards of the same rank (for example 7-7).
Suited / offsuit	s = same suit (AKs); o = different suits (AKo).
Connectors	Connected ranks (for example 8-9).
Set	Three of a kind made with a pocket pair plus one board card.
Trips	Three of a kind using one hole card and a paired board.
Kicker	Side card used to break ties within the same category.
Draw	A hand that needs one more card to complete (flush draw, straight draw).
Open-ended straight draw	Straight draw that can hit on either end (often ~8 outs).
Gutshot	Inside straight draw (often ~4 outs).
Nuts	Best possible hand on the current board.
Overpair	Pocket pair higher than every board card.
Top pair	Pairing the highest board card with a hole card.
Play the board	Your best five cards are all on the board.

Ten categories high to low: hand rankings.

Strategy words (intermediate)

Term	Meaning
C-bet (continuation bet)	Betting the flop after you were the preflop aggressor.
Donk bet	Betting into the previous aggressor out of position when you were not last to raise.
Bluff	Betting or raising mainly to make better hands fold.
Semi-bluff	Betting with a drawing hand that can improve if called.
Value bet	Betting a strong hand hoping worse hands call.
Slow play	Playing a strong hand passively (check/call) to hide strength.
Tight / loose	Playing few hands vs many hands.
Aggressive / passive	Betting and raising often vs mostly checking and calling.
Range	The set of hands a player might hold for a given action.
Missed draw	A draw that did not complete by the river.
Cooler	Both players hold very strong hands; the weaker one is hard to fold.
Bad beat	A strong favorite loses when later cards complete the underdog.

More on bluffs vs semi-bluffs: bluffing basics.

Odds and stack terms

Term	Meaning
Outs	Unseen cards that likely improve your hand.
Pot odds	The price of calling relative to the pot — used to judge whether a call is reasonable in chip terms.
Equity	Your share of the pot if the hand were run many times from the current cards.
EV (expected value)	The long-run average result of a decision.
Stack depth	How many big blinds you have in front of you (often written as 100bb).
bb	Big-blind unit for measuring stacks and bet sizes.

Counting outs and pot odds: odds guide.

Table formats (definitions only)

Term	Meaning
Cash / ring game	Fixed blinds; players can usually join or leave between hands.
Tournament	Blind levels rise on a schedule; players are eliminated when chips run out.
Sit & Go	A short single-table contest that starts when seats fill.
Heads-up	Exactly two players.
Full ring / short-handed	About nine seats vs six or fewer.
Dealer	Live: the person who deals. Online: software deals; the button still marks position.

The table above only defines terms. CC Poker currently focuses on private rooms (2 / 6 / 9 seats) and practice tables — availability of other formats follows what the app actually shows. Chips are entertainment only: they cannot be gifted or exchanged for cash or goods. 18+ only.

FAQ

What are the flop, turn, and river?

The flop is the first three community cards dealt together. The turn is the fourth community card (fourth street). The river is the fifth and final community card (fifth street).

What does limp mean in poker?

A limp means entering the pot preflop by only calling the big-blind amount — without raising. An open limp is limping when nobody has entered yet.

What is a donk bet?

A donk bet is betting out of position into the previous street's aggressor when you were not the last raiser. Some people also use "donk" informally for a weak player — context matters.

What is a 3-bet?

Counting the big blind as the first bet, the first raise (open) is a 2-bet. A re-raise after that open is a 3-bet; another raise is a 4-bet.

What is a kicker?

A kicker is a side card used to break ties when the main hand category is the same — for example A-A-K beats A-A-Q.

What are outs?

Outs are remaining unseen cards that likely improve your hand. A flush draw often has about 9 outs; an open-ended straight draw often has about 8.

What does the nuts mean?

The nuts is the best possible hand given the current board. "Second nuts" means the next-best possible hand.

How should beginners learn poker terms?

Learn street names first (preflop, flop, turn, river, showdown), then actions (check, bet, call, raise, fold, all-in), then positions and strategy words. Grouping beats memorizing a random list.