Bridge slang and jargon

[pdmunro]

The list below comes from the Glossary at the end of Friendly Bridge: Beginning Bridge Lessons By Ed Kinlaw and Linda MacCleave (Richmond Bridge Association). http://richmondbridge.net/PDF/handouts/fri...book_Sept07.pdf

 

I have selected all the slang terms, and any jargon that I recall puzzling over when I first heard it. The only term that I have added is "peter" which is the UK equivalent of the US term "echo".

 

Baby: (1) (slang) (adjective) low. [usage: "two baby hearts" = two hearts of insignificant rank.]

(2) (adjective) occurring one level lower than usual (e.g., Baby Blackwood: three notrump as an ace-asking bid).

 

-bagger (slang) indicative of the length held, as in "five-bagger" (a five-card suit).

 

Bare: (slang) unprotected; not accompanied by small cards. [bare king = singleton king; queen-jack bare = doubleton queen-jack].

 

Blitz: (slang) (verb) defeat severely; (slang) (noun) a big win; (slang) (noun) a win that obtains the maximum possible score.

 

Blockbuster: (slang) a very powerful hand; powerhouse.

 

Board: (1) (slang) the dummy; dummy's cards, as spread on the table; (2) in duplicate bridge: a holder, usually of metal or plastic, used to preserve the cards as originally dealt; (3) (slang) a deal.

 

Boost: (1) (slang) raise; (2) (slang) bid in the bope of pushing the opponents to a higher contract.

 

Bring in: (slang) fulfill (a contract); play (a suit) without loss, or without adverse circumstance, or to win a particular number of tricks.

 

Business double: penalty double.

 

Bust: (slang) a very poor hand; a hand weak in honor cards; a hand weak for the holder's earlier bidding.

 

By me: (slang) improper form of "pass".

 

Cash: (slang) take a trick with (a winning card).

Cash out: (slang) cash all available immediate winners.

Cheapest bid: the lowest legal bid. [Over one club, one diamond is the cheapest bid.].

Check: (slang) improper form of "pass."

 

Coffeehousing: (slang) making gratuitous statements, often (and highly improperly) with the intention of misleading or confusing the opponents.

 

Cold: (slang) easily makable; laydown.

Come-on (signal): a defensive card-play signal encouraging partner to lead or continue leading a particular suit.

 

Crack: (slang) double (for penalty).

 

Ditch: (slang) discard (usually a loser).

Dog: (1) (slang) (noun) a very weak hand, or one that is very weak for the previous bidding; (2) (verb) [usually with "it"] bid conservatively.

 

Down: set; defeated.

 

Drive out: force an opponent to part with (a certain card or cards).

Duck: (1) play a small card when holding a higher one; (2) surrender (a trick).

 

Dump: (slang) discard;

 

Echo: the play of a high card followed by a low card (in the same suit); [Commonly used to show attitude, encouragement or discouragement, or parity of count, even or odd, in the suit.]. (In the US one "echoes", in the UK one "peters".)

 

Empty: without any significant cards other than those specified. [Example: Ace-empty-fifth means a five-card holding in which the only significant high card is the ace.]

 

Endplay: (1) (verb) force an opponent to lead disadvantageously; (2) (noun) the position of the cards so resulting;

 

Exit: get off lead.

 

 

Feature: (1) a high honor (usually ace or king; sometimes ace, king or queen). (2) anything of interest in a particular suit, such as a high honor or shortness.

 

-fifth: within or heading a five-card holding. [usage: jack-fifth = five cards headed by the jack = Jxxxx.]

 

Fix: an unfortunate result caused by happenstance or undeservedly rewarded poor performance by the opponents.

Fixed: (1) (slang) placed in a difficult position; (2) (slang) in line for a poor result because of winning action taken by the opponents.

Flat hand: (slang) a hand with 4-3-3-3 suit distribution.

Flat board: in pairs play, a board on which all (in casual usage, almost all) of the participants achieved equivalent results.

 

Float: (1) (during the bidding) (slang) be followed by passes. [Example: Three notrump floated = three notrump was passed out. West's three spades floated around to South = North and East passed over three spades.] (2) (during the play) (slang) lead and duck; let ride (usually by declarer's not putting up a higher card from his hand or dummy's) [Example: South floated the jack of hearts around to East's queen.] (3) (during the play) (slang) not get covered. [Example: The ten of spades floated (i.e., was led and won the trick).]

 

-fourth: within or heading a four-card holding. [usage: jack-fourth = four cards headed by the jack = Jxxx.]

 

Free bid: a bid made when it is not necessary to bid to allow partner another chance to call.

 

Gadget: (slang) a convention designed to cover a specific bidding situation rather than an entire class of auctions.

 

Good: (1) established; (2) consisting of all winners.

 

Go to bed with: (slang) fail to take a trick with [usually, of a card that could have won a trick in a straightforward manner].

 

Hand hog: a player who attempts to become declarer as often as possible.

 

Hit: (1) (slang) double; (2) (slang) ruff; (3) (slang) (relating to a dummy) come down.

 

Hook: (slang) finesse.

 

Jam: (slang) preempt.

 

Jettison: a discard, particularly the discard of a blocking card.

 

Kibitzer: spectator.

 

Kiss of death: a score of minus 200 at matchpoints when the maximum possible contract is at the part-score level.

 

Knock out: force out so as to establish lower cards.

 

Laydown: (slang) easily makable; cold.

 

Lock: (1) (slang) (usually said of a contract or a set of circumstances) certainty; (2) (slang) place the lead irrevocably in a particular opponent's hand.

 

Locked: (slang) restricted to or away from ["Locked in dummy" means unable to get the lead out of dummy; "locked out of dummy" means unable to get the lead to dummy.].

 

Minnie: (slang) minimum.

 

Monster: (slang) a strong hand.

Moose: (slang) a strong hand.

 

Moysian fit: a partnership trump holding of four cards in one hand and three in the other.

 

Nuisance bid: action aimed at disrupting the opponents' auction.

 

Off: (1) (slang) down; set; (2) (slang) offside (3) (slang) missing.

 

Off the top: (adjective) describing tricks that can be taken without gaining the lead or lost before gaining the lead [usage: Four spades was down off the top = the defenders could take at least four tricks before declarer gained the lead.]

 

Offside: unfavorably located;

 

Onside: favorably located.

 

Our hand: (slang) a deal on which "our side" can make a higher contract than the opponents.

 

Pard: (slang) partner.

 

Passed out: (1) (of a contract) allowed to stand; (2) (of a deal) thrown in because no player bid.

 

Passive: (of a defensive play) not risking tricks but not tending to promote any immediately.

 

Phone number: (1) (slang) a penalty in four digits; (2) (slang) any large penalty.

 

Peter: the play of a high card followed by a low card (in the same suit); [Commonly used to show attitude, encouragement or discouragement, or parity of count, even or odd, in the suit.]. (In the UK one "peters", in the US one "echoes".)

 

Piece: (1) (slang) part-score; (2) (slang) a high honor [A piece in spades means a spade honor.]; (3) (slang) any card. [in general cardplaying lingo, "a piece in spades" sometimes means any spade.] (4) (slang) double for penalty [i wanted to take a piece of that contract.]

 

Pitch: (1) (noun) (slang) discard. (2) (verb) (slang) to discard.

 

Pointed (suit): spades or diamonds.

 

Post-mortem: (slang) discussion of deals following play.

 

Powerhouse: (slang) a very strong hand.

 

Pull: (1) draw (trumps); (2) remove partner's double.

 

Pump: (slang) force out a trump.

 

Push: (1) (slang) (verb) bid more than justified by the values held; (2) (slang) (verb) force the opponents to a higher level; (3) (slang) (noun) in team-of-four contests, a no-score result on a deal; wash; washout. (4) (slang) (verb) in team-of-four contests, to create or to achieve a no-score result on a deal. (5)(slang) (verb) lead; (6) (slang) (adjective) having no net score.

 

Quick trick: a high-card holding likely to take a trick on an early round of a suit. [Typical quick-trick values: ace-king = 2; ace-queen = 1.5; ace or king-queen = 1; king = 0.5.].

 

Refuse: duck.

 

Renege: fail to follow suit (when able to do so); revoke.

 

Rock crusher: (slang) powerful hand.

 

Rounded (suit): hearts or clubs.

 

Ruff: (verb) trump; (noun) the play a trump on the lead of another suit.

 

Ruff and sluff: the ability to trump in one hand and discard (usually a loser) from the other.

Ruff out: establish by ruffing.

 

Ruffing value: shortness that may lead to ruffing tricks.

 

Rule of Two and Three: a rule propounded by Ely Culbertson as a guide for preemptive bids: you should be within two tricks of your contract when vulnerable and within three tricks when not vulnerable.

 

Sack: (slang) sacrifice.

 

Sandbag: (slang) pass with strong values, hoping to trap the opponents or come into the bidding later on.

 

Score: (1) a numerical result of a deal, match, session or event; (2) (slang) take a trick with; [usage: Score the queen of spades = take a trick with the queen of spades.] (3) (slang) win. [usage: Score three spades and two hearts = take three spade tricks and two heart tricks.]

 

Seat: (1) place at a table; (2) (slang) position (meaning 2).

 

Set up: (1) (noun) established; (2) (verb) establish.

 

Shaded: (of a bid) made on slightly fewer values than usual.

 

Shape: (1) (slang) distribution. (2) (of a suit) pointed or rounded. [spades and diamonds are pointed suits; hearts and clubs are rounded suits.]

 

Sluff: discard.

 

Soft values: lower honors, usually queens and jacks, as compared with aces and kings.

 

Solid: (of a suit) with no gaps, or with no gaps after the specified card. [usage: five solid = AKQJ10 (sometimes AKQJx). jack-ten-solidfifth = J10987.]

 

Spots: (slang) (noun) strong intermediate cards;

 

Spot card: any card from deuce through nine.

 

Square hand: hand of 4-3-3-3 distribution.

 

Steal: (1) (of a trick) win with an unusually low card (2) (of a trick) win without losing the lead (3) (of a tempo) gain time needed to perform some other function or deprive the oppponents of such time. (4) (of a contract) make through deception when there was a way to defend successfully. (Also refers to a successful deceptive defense but not usually so applied.) (5) (of an auction) become declarer at a (perhaps surprisingly) low contract when the opponents could profitably have bid higher.

 

Stiff: (1) (slang) (adjective) unsupported by low cards. [stiff king = singleton king; queen-jack stiff = queen-jack doubleton] (2) (slang) (noun) singleton. (3) (slang) (verb) discard protection from or all other cards in a suit except. [stiff the ace of clubs = discard all clubs other than the ace]

 

Strain: one of the four suits or notrump; the non-numerical element of a bid; denomination.

 

Swish: (slang) followed by all passes. [usage: four spades swish = four spades, pass, pass, pass.]

 

Tank: (1) (slang) (verb) not act for a long time. (2) (slang) (noun) a state of intense concentration. [usage: South went into the tank.]

 

Tap: (slang) force to ruff; pump; force.

 

Their hand: (slang) a deal on which "their side" can make a higher contract than ours.

 

-third: within or heading a three-card holding. [usage: jack-third = three cards headed by the jack = jack-tripleton = Jxx.]

 

Tickets: (1) (slang) high cards; (2) pick-up slips

 

Tight: (1) (slang) conservative; (2) (slang) (of an honor or honor holding) not protected by small cards. [usage: tight king = singleton king; queen-jack tight = doubleton queen-jack.]

 

Touching: adjacent (usually in rank, as "touching cards," "touching honors" or "touching suits").

 

Trap pass: pass made with enough values to take other action.

 

Treatment: a partnership's interpretaton of an action.

 

Unauthorized information (UI): knowledge that a player is not entitled to use (as, for example, that obtained through partner's uneven tempo).

 

Unguard: discard accompanying, protecting small cards.

 

Up the line: (1) describing bidding the cheapest of equivalent features; [Responding one heart to a one-diamond opening with four cards in each major is bidding up the line.] (2) describing playing the lowest of available cards.

 

Vulnerability conditions:

(slang) amber (U.K.) = both sides vulnerable.

(slang) equal = neither side vulnerable or both sides vulnerable.

(slang) favorable = nonvulnerable against vulnerable opponents.

(slang) green (U.K.) = nonvulnerable against vulnerable opponents.

(slang) horse and horse = both sides vulnerable.

(slang) red (U.K.) = vulnerable against nonvulnerable opponents.

(slang) red (U.S.) = vulnerable.

(slang) red against red (U.S.) = both sides vulnerable.

(slang) red against white (U.S.) = vulnerable against nonvulnerable opponents.

(slang) unfavorable = vulnerable against nonvulnerable opponents.

(slang) white (U.S.) = nonvulnerable.

(slang) white (U.K.) = neither side vulnerable.

(slang) white against red (U.S.) = nonvulnerable against vulnerable opponents.

(slang) white against white (U.S.) = neither side vulnerable.

 

Yarborough: (1) a hand containing no honor card; (2) (slang) a weak or relatively weak hand.

[PassedOut]

We do have lots of slang!

 

I would add: Quack: queen or jack.

[nick_s]

My wife (who is learning the game) pointed out to me that saying a bid is 'conventional' is the opposite of normal usage.

 

Think about it...

[blackshoe]

Heh. Your wife's right. B)

 

I've often wondered what makes people view a strong 2 club system as more "natural" than a strong 1 club system - other than "it's what I'm used to", of course.

[nick_s]

Transportation: entries

[Apollo81]

Squeeze

[1eyedjack]

My wife (who is learning the game) pointed out to me that saying a bid is 'conventional' is the opposite of normal usage.

 

Think about it...

Heh, and in the UK we used to have a system where "restricted licence" events relaxed the rules on artificial conventions, when "general licence" events limited you to more restrictive list of permitted methods. Another counterintuitive labelling (since discarded).

[Echognome]

I'll give some themed ones:

 

(Dial) Toll Free Collect 800 on defense.

Sticks and Wheels Collect 1100 on defense.

Saw Off Double for penalties.

Go for blood Double for penalties.

Put your head on the chopping block Make a bid that might cost a severe penalty if doubled.

 

And on the other side:

 

The world's fair Having a very good hand.

Monster Having a great hand.

The nuts Having a surprisingly good hand, typically shown in dummy.

Send it back Redouble with the intention of making (or bluffing).

Rewind Redouble as above.

[barmar]

Heh. Your wife's right. B)

 

I've often wondered what makes people view a strong 2 club system as more "natural" than a strong 1 club system - other than "it's what I'm used to", of course.

The more you bid suits you actually have, the more "natural" a system is.

 

Strong 1♣ systems make artificial 1♣ and 1♦ openings much more than strong 2♣ systems. In natural systems, you probably make a natural opening at least 95% of the time, while it's probably only 50-75% of the time in a strong ♣ system. Also, strong ♣ systems tend to have more artificial responses and relay gadgets, while natural systems have mostly natural responses and continuations.

[barmar]

My wife (who is learning the game) pointed out to me that saying a bid is 'conventional' is the opposite of normal usage.

 

Think about it...

While "conventional" often means "ordinary", it also means "relating to a convention". A convention is an agreement (e.g. the Geneva Convention). This is where our usage comes from.

[jdeegan]

:huh:

dink (slang) - same as tap when used as a verb. Sometimes used as a adjective as in: "spades was our dink suit".

 

telephone number (slang) or just number - a large penalty - usually from a doubled contract

 

round hand - same as square hand - 4-3-3-3 shape

 

relay bid - asks partner to bid the next highest suit

 

transfer bid - a specialized type of relay bid

 

world's fair (slang) - a monster

 

josephine - old name for the 5NT grand slam force - named for Eli Culbertson's wife Josephine

 

Then, we have the whole family of coups which include:

Grand

Morton's Fork

en passant

schmuck

 

Also, one of the first things to teach newcomers so they can begin to translate the apparent gibberish that passes for conversation among bridge players is the correct way to relate a bridge hand: suits are given in the order of ♠ ♥ ♦ ♣. Insignificant spot cards may be omitted. Example: "Ace fourth, king queen ten fifth, stiff and three small" for [hv=s=sa862hkq1086d7c865]133|100|[/hv]

[foo]

"The Rabbi"= The stiff K.

 

"biff with a stiff"= to ruff with a singleton trump

 

"stiff"= singleton (was that already here?)

 

"The beer card"= the D7

 

"The curse of Scotland"= the D9

 

"jack off dummy"= playing the jack from dummy

 

"mushroom"= a player who shows the intelligence and skill of ...

 

"Walrus"= someone who thinks HCP are the definitive gospel to evaluating a hand.

Add references to any of Victor Mollo's other characters to this list as well.

 

"Pennsylvania ave" or "going for ..."= getting +1600 or going -1600

 

"Marie Antoinette" or "Marie Antoinette bid (or action)"=

A player or player making a call or action that rates to get the player making it "sent to the guillotine", eg get a very bad score.

 

I'll see if I can remember any others.

[pclayton]

Middle Ages - (same as sticks and wheels) - 1100

 

Picture Gallery - A hand full of kings and queens thats nice to look at but isn't that great or it may be unwise to take action.

 

Pounder - as in a '23 pounder'. A big hand with 'x' points.

 

Miami Endplay - Where declarer is endplayed instead of v.v.

 

Maytag - Where an Ace gets 'lost in the wash' and doesn't get cashed.

 

Hawaii - When trumps go 5-0. Also see "Clayton" for the older readers of BBF's B)

 

Handling or UPS Charges - A hand where trump control is very difficult to manage

Board-Locked / Hand-Locked or Alcatraz - Where declarer can't get from one hand to another.

 

Stuck - Endplayed