Blackjack Dictionary

Find a number of different terms used by players when playing blackjack online here:

• Bankroll -
  the sum the gambler is going to play with.
• Basic strategy -
  a playing strategy for blackjack, suggested by a computer, that a gambler can easily remember without the need for counting cards.
• Breaking hand (stiff) -
  a hand that goes over 21 in a single draw. Like a hard 12, 13, 14, 15 or 16.
• Burned -
  the top card in the deck after it's been split is thrown away (burned), this way the players cannot see its value.
• Busted -
  to draw a sum of over 21. you lose the game immediately.
• Counting -
  a method to know what cards are still in the game and could be still drawn.
• Doubling down -
  when the player think he can win by getting only one more card, he can double his bet.
• Draw -
  being dealt another card.
• Face card -
  a card with a picture on it (king, queen or jack)
• First Base -
  the left-most seat after the dealer
• Hard count -
  the actual value of the face cards (not 10 points)
• Hard hand -
  a hand with no aces, or a hand in which the ace is counted as one.
• Hit -
  to ask the dealer to draw another card for you.
• Hole card -
  the dealer's card that's facing down.
• Insurance -
  a side-bet, offered when the dealer's face-card is an ace, that if the dealer get a blackjack the bet is won. Payout rate is 2:1.
• Natural -
  a blackjack in the first two cards. Automatically wins, and pays 3:2
• Pat hand -
  a hand with a value between 17 and 21.
• Pit boss -
  the casino employee in charge of the blackjack area
• Point count -
  the net value of total cards at the end of a game.
• Press -
  enlarge the current bet
• Push -
  a state of tie between the dealer and gambler. No money is paid or collected.
• Shoe -
  a box for cards from several decks.
• Soft hand -
  a hand with an ace, that's counted as 11.
• Splitting pairs -
  when a player gets 2 cards of the same value, he can split them into two hands, and play each one like a new hand.
• Stand -
  when a player decides he does not want any additional cards.
• Surrender -
  giving up half the bet, and saving the other half, when a player estimates he cannot beat the dealers hand. Surrender must be declared before any additional cards are draw (only the first 2)
• Third base -
  the seat that is last to be dealt any cards.
• 21 -
  another name for the blackjack game and the number to be reached in order to win
• up-card -
  the dealer's card that is facing upwards.