psychology
Level
A level in a tournament is a period of time in which the blinds and antes stay the same. After each level, the blinds go up. For example, level 4 might have blinds of 100/200.
Leveling
Leveling is thinking about what your opponent thinks you think, and adjusting your play accordingly. It is also called multiple-level thinking. It means looking beyond your own cards to the beliefs of the other player.
Live One
A live one is a not very knowledgeable player who plays a lot of hands. Good players like to have him at the table, because he loses money.
Loose
A loose player is a player who plays a lot of hands, including weak ones. He enters many pots and is less selective than the average player. The opposite style is tight.
Loose Game
A loose game is a game in which many players are involved in many hands. The players are not selective, so pots are larger and more frequent.
Loose-Passive
A loose-passive player plays many hands, and calls rather than bets or raises. He is also called a calling station.
Luck
Luck is the influence of chance, rather than skill, in a game. In poker, luck can decide the short term, but in the long run skill wins.
Luck Out
To luck out is to outdraw and beat a good hand. The player who was behind catches the card he needs.
Maniac
A maniac is a very loose and very aggressive player who bets and raises with many hands, often when it is not a good idea. He puts lots of chips into the pot and makes the game very wild.
Mark
A mark is a player at the table who attracts attention because he is inexperienced and weak, so the others expect to win his money. The words 'fish' and 'sucker' mean the same.
Miracle Card
A miracle card is a card that is very unlikely to appear but gives a player a winning hand when he was almost certain to lose. A player who needs one of the last cards in the deck and gets it has caught a miracle card.
Mneumonics
Mnemonics are mental devices used to remember things. In Hold'em, players give names to starting hands, such as Big Slick or Maverick, to remember them easily.
Nailing
Nailing is a cheater's technique of marking cards with a fingernail or a device. It is the same as pricking, pegging and punctuating.
New-Breed Player
A new-breed player is an advanced-concept player in public or casino poker. He uses modern strategy and understanding of concepts, such as ranges and position.
Nit
A nit is a very tight player who only plays premium hands and avoids risk. He folds most of his hands, and when he bets or raises, he usually has a strong hand.
Nucleus Players
Nucleus players are the dependable, regular players who keep a game going. A card room relies on them to fill the tables.
Nursing
Nursing means playing conservatively because you are losing and have only a few chips left. You try to make the stack last.
On Tilt
On tilt describes a player whose emotions harm his play, often after a bad beat or a series of losses. He plays worse than usual, often with too much aggression.
One Time
'One time' is a plea that players say aloud when they need a specific card to come, as in 'one time!' on the river. It is a way of asking for luck, rather than a play or a rule.
Out of Line
Out of line describes a play or action that is different from what is normal or expected, often an aggressive or risky move that is not typically made in that situation.
Outdraw
To outdraw is to beat an opponent by drawing a better hand. The player who was behind catches a card and wins.
Passive
A passive player mostly checks and calls and rarely bets or raises. The style is the opposite of aggressive.
Pay Station
A pay station is a player who rarely folds, so that he often calls with worse hands and loses money. The same type of player is a calling station.
Payoff
A payoff is a call of a bet, usually on the last round, with a hand that is not expected to be the best. The caller pays off the bettor.
Picked Off
To be picked off is to get called when you are bluffing. Your opponent finds your bluff by calling.
Pigeon
A pigeon is a player who is seen as a bad player by others. He is a weak player who makes many mistakes and loses money.
Poker Face
A poker face is an expression that hides a player's thoughts and does not reveal anything about the cards he holds. It is a basic skill that stops opponents from gaining information.
Poker Shark
A poker shark is a highly skilled player who makes a living by beating weaker opponents. Weak players are called fish or donkeys, and sharks are the ones who prey on them.
Post‑Mortem
A post-mortem is a discussion or analysis of a hand or a game after it has ended. Players talk about what they did and what they could have done.
Pot Committed
Being pot committed means that you have already put so many chips in the pot that folding is no longer sensible, because the pot is large compared with the chips you have left.
Pricking
Pricking is a cheating technique in which a cheater marks cards with a fingernail or a device. The marks help him to recognize the cards later.
Prop
A prop, short for proposition bet, is a side bet that players make about outcomes that are independent of the actual outcome of the game.