Learning about Poker Starts with Learning the Terms and Expressions of the Game.

Poker Terms D to G

• Hand - Refers to the cards that you hold, or to everything that happens in a card game between shuffles of the deck.


• Hard Count - Activity in which coin (hard) currency is counted. It is usually done in a special room under tight security. Counting the change from slot machines.


• Hard Hand - In blackjack, any hand that does not contain an Ace valued at 11. (You can value an Ace 1 or 11 to suit you).


• High Poker - Standard poker, as compared to low poker or lowball. In high poker, high hands win.


• High Roller - A player that wagers big bets.


• Hit - In blackjack, to take another card. The card received is also called a hit.


• Holding Your Own - Neither winning nor losing, just breaking even.


• Hot - A player who is on a winning streak, or a slot machine that is paying out.


• House - A casino or gambling center/centre. Also the operators of a gambling game.


• House Edge - The casino in-built advantage, usually gained by paying less than the odds.


• Inside Bets - A roulette bet placed on any number, or small combination of numbers.


• Insurance - In blackjack, a side bet that the dealer has a natural. Insurance is offered only when the dealers up card is an ace. The insurance bet wins double if the dealer has a natural, but loses if the dealer does not.


• Jackpot - A big win on a slot machine.


• Joker - The 53rd card in a deck, sometimes used as a wild card.


• Juice - (USA) Vig. or Vigorish. Commission taken by the house.


• Laying the Odds - There are two fundamental forms of wagering, 'taking the odds' and 'laying the odds'. In most forms of sports betting, some odds are so high in favour of the likely winner that winning wagers get paid an amount less than the amount wagered by some percentage, and this is what is meant by 'laying the odds'. In most casino games the player is 'taking the odds' by wagering an amount that is less than they will receive if they win, that is; if you wager $1 you would win more than $1.


• Layout - Cloth on a gaming table. Markings tell you where you can place your bets.


• Load up - To play the maximum number of coins per spin that a slot machine or video game will allow.


• Long Run - The number of rounds of play, hands or spins, needed for the ratio of wins to losses to reach a point where they are changed very little by the cumulative effect of outcomes.


• Loose - Referred to slot machines that have a generous payout.


• Low Poker - Also called lowball, is poker in which the pot is awarded to the hand with the lowest poker value.