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Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | Announcement A method of promptly informing the opponents that partner's call has a particular meaning. The purposes of announcements and alerts are similar, but an announcement gives the meaning where an alert may prompt the opponents to ask the meaning. Sponsoring organizations set rules on which calls should be anno... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | Antipositional A call is antipositional if it tends to make the "wrong" partner the declarer. If West opens the bidding, it may be best for South to declare a North-South contract, so that West will have to play from his high cards on opening lead. This positioning may protect South's tenaces. In that case, a call that... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | Appeal In tournaments, to appeal is to request that a committee review a ruling made by a director.
Approach–forcing A principle, first used in the Culbertson system, that has survived in modern bidding. The original idea was to abandon the indiscriminate notrump bids that characterized auction bridge in favor of a slo... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | Auction bridge, an earlier form of bridge, differing from today's contract bridge chiefly in the scoring. Most notably, overtricks counted the same as tricks bid and made, so they were scored below the line and any contract, no matter how low, could produce a game or slam bonus.Austrian System Another name for Vienna S... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | Automatic squeeze A squeeze position that succeeds against either opponent. Compare with Positional squeeze.
AverageIn matchpoint scoring, one-half the matchpoints available on a given deal. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | An average score is sometimes awarded to one or both pairs when for some reason they cannot play the board. If neither pair is at fault or both pairs are at fault, the director may decide to award an average to each side. Law 12.C.2 of the Laws of Duplicate Contract Bridge states that if one pair is at fault, it receiv... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | A | In IMP (Butler) pairs, "average" refers to the "datum" used in scoring.Avoidance play A play designed to keep a particular defender off lead, often to prevent the lead of a suit through a tenace position in either declarer's hand or dummy. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Back in To make a partnership's first bid, having previously passed. For example, in 1♥ – (P) – 1NT – (P); 2♣ – (Dbl), the doubler has backed into the bidding.
Backward finesse A combination of two finesses in a suit such that the first finesse is "backward": that is, leading away from the hand containing the tenace. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Balance To keep the bidding open when it is about to be passed out at a low level. For example, if the bidding goes 1♥ – (P) – P – (1NT), the 1NT bid is a balancing action. The balancing bid is often made with a hand of substandard strength in order to prevent the opponents from securing a low-level contract. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Balanced distributionNarrowly, a balanced distribution of a hand is 4–3–3–3, 4–4–3–2 or 5–3–3–2. Equivalently, there are no voids, no singletons, and at most one doubleton.
Balanced is sometimes used in a broad sense that includes semi-balanced. Broadly, balanced distribution permits no void, singleton, or 7-card suit.... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Bar To prevent a player from making a bid, either by a penalty caused by an irregularity, or because partnership agreement requires a pass in a given situation. In either case, the player is said to be "barred." Bar bid A bid which by partnership agreement requires partner to pass at future turns to call in the current... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Barometer scoring In a duplicate event, the posting of contestants' running scores after each round. Knowledge of the current standings often adds excitement to the contest, and can affect the strategies adopted by those in a position to win the event.
Bath coup A holdup by declarer, to prevent an opponent from continu... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Better minor A commonly used term for the choice of minor suit opening bid with less than four cards, typically in five card major systems. In Standard American Yellow Card, it is normal to bid the longer suit with 3 cards in one and two in the other, and 1 ♣ with 3–3. In this sense the term is a misnomer as a poor clu... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Bermuda Bowl The trophy awarded to the winner of the World Zonal Open Team Championship, the most prestigious in bridge. More commonly the term refers to the competition itself, a biennial two-week tournament among open teams that have qualified in their geographic zones.
Bid A specification of both level and denominat... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Bidding space The number of steps available in an auction, or the number of steps consumed by a bid. The sequence 1♣ – 1♦ consumes only one step, whereas 1♦ – 2♣ consumes four steps. Because alternative bids are skipped, it often happens that the more steps a bid takes up, the more specific meaning it carries. See Usef... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Bidding system The complete set of agreements and understandings assigned to calls and sequences of calls used by a partnership, including a full description of the meaning of each treatment and convention. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Biltcliffe coup (British slang) A sarcastic term applied to a poor result as a consequence of four steps: (1) the opponents are about to play in a part score, when you bid in pass-out seat, (2) the opponents then bid game, (3) you double for penalties, and (4) they make the contract. In some circles, the coup is not re... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | BIT Break in tempo. See Tempo def 2.
Blackwood convention Popular bidding convention in contract bridge, used to determine number of partner's aces/kings to evaluate for slam bids.
Blank(Adjective) Unprotected by other, usually lower cards in the same suit: "I held the blank king of spades." (Verb) To discard in such a... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Blocked (Adjective) If a suit is divided between partners in such a way that the hand with the shorter holding has only high cards, the suit cannot be run without an entry to the longer holding in another suit; it is then said to be blocked. If North holds ♦AK and South holds ♦QJ10, South cannot cash a third diamond tr... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Board One particular allocation of 52 cards to the four players including the bidding, the play of the cards and the scoring based on those cards. Also called deal or hand.
A device that keeps each player's cards separate for duplicate bridge. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | The dummy's hand. For example, "You're on the board" means "The lead is in the dummy".Board-a-match (BAM) A form of scoring for teams, analogous to matchpoint scoring for pairs. A team earns 1 point if its pairs score higher than the opposing pairs (with the same cards at the other table), 1/2 for equal scores, and 0 f... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Body Intermediate cards such as the 9, 8 and 7, that contribute to a suit's trick-taking potential. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Bonus In bridge scoring, beyond points for bid tricks taken, which are awarded for making a contract, the additional points awarded for making a doubled contract, or for making doubled or redoubled overtricks. There are different bonus amounts at the partscore, game, small slam, and grand slam levels. The size of most ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Book(Noun) The basic six tricks that must be taken by the declaring side. The first six "book" tricks are always assumed and are not taken into account in bidding or scoring. Thus, a contract at the 1-level commits declarer to take at least 7 (that is, 6 + 1) tricks, and provides trick points only for the trick above b... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | (Verb, usually passive) Slang. As declarer, to have lost the maximum number of tricks without being set. At 4♠, declarer is "booked" when he has lost three tricks.Bottom At matchpoint scoring, a result no better than any other by a pair playing the same cards, resulting in an award of minimum matchpoints; either jointl... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Boxed (British slang) Adjective applied to a card found to be face-up during dealing, and by extension to the whole pack. Also used for a card found to be face-up in a hand extracted from a duplicate board, or for the hand itself.
Bracket A group of entries in a tournament that will eventually have one winner. The grou... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | Break(Noun) The distribution of cards in a suit between the two opponents' (often unseen) hands: "I got a 4–1 spade break." An even break occurs when the cards are distributed evenly or nearly so, such as 3–3 or 3–2. A bad break, connoting a distribution that is difficult to handle, suggests an unexpectedly uneven dist... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | (Verb) To be divided between two hands. "The spades broke 3–2." (Verb) To lead a particular suit for the first time during a particular deal.
(Verb) Slang. To play for and find a particular distribution, usually the most favorable. "I broke the spades."Bridge maxims A compilation of short "laws", "rules" and rules-of-t... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | A busy defense is an alternative term for an active defense.Butler, or Butler scoring A method of scoring in duplicate bridge pairs events. Each pair's result on a board is compared against a "datum" score which is the arithmetic mean of all the results (usually after exclusion of one or more of the top and bottom resu... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | B | ByeA round of an event during which a team or pair is not scheduled to play.
A location ("bye-stand") such as a chair or table, where boards are kept when not in use during an event. Typically used in a Mitchell movement with an even number of pairs when there is a "share and relay". |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Caddy An assistant to the director, or Head Director, primarily responsible for moving boards between tables and collecting score slips.
CalcuttaCross-IMP scoring.
A tournament in which bettors bid on participating pairs or teams. The proceeds from the auction are distributed partly as prizes to the top finishers, part... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | CaptainIn a teams competition, one person called the captain must represent a team in stipulated official settings and make stipulated official decisions for a team. A playing captain (pc) is eligible to participate as a player at the table; a non-playing captain (npc) may not play. Many team competitions including WBF... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | The partner who makes the decision for a partnership in certain bidding situations, such as ace-asking sequences.Card reading The act of determining the distribution of cards in unseen hands, and the location of high cards therein, by analyzing the bidding, play and other clues.
Carding The defensive signaling used by ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Many tournaments for teams, pairs, or individuals have stages that progressively reduce the field, such as by cutting the bottom half at the end of each day. Sometimes the qualifiers continue with a fraction of their qualifying margins as carryover, which effectively gives weight less than one to points scored in the e... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Cash To take a trick with a card that is currently the highest in the suit, thought likely to succeed, or to take all available winners in a suit.
Cavendish variation A version of Chicago, with dealer's side not vulnerable on the second and third hands, as in the standard version.
CBF Canadian Bridge Federation.
Change... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Claim A statement by declarer about how the remaining unplayed tricks will be won or lost. Normally the claiming player exposes his hand and describes the sequence of play for the remaining tricks (but such plays as finesses, unless already proven, are disallowed). A claim is best made only when the play of the rest of... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Clear a suit Knock out an opponent's high-card control of a suit, or unblock one's own high cards.
Closed hand Declarer's hand (as distinct from the dummy, which is faced or open).
Closed room In a team match, a room where two of the pairs compete, and in which spectators are not allowed.
Coffeehousing Making improper ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Colors first A bidding approach where players indicate suits (denominations) before showing high card strength. For example, natural suit overcalls and natural one-level suit opening bids are usually "colors first". Natural notrump opening bids and natural notrump overcalls usually show strength rather than suits. A Mi... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | A combination finesse is one of several tactics in play of the cards that includes multiple finesses in one suit or combines another technique with a finesse.Combination play A line of play that offers more than one chance to take additional tricks: for example, playing to drop an honor in a longer suit and then finess... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Come-on A defensive signal that encourages partner to continue a suit, usually by means of the rank of the card used to follow suit.
Comic notrump A notrump overcall that shows a weak hand with a long suit, to which the overcaller can escape if doubled. Also known as Gardener 1NT.
Communication The placement of the lea... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | The means of conveying a message to partner via the bidding and by the card played to a trick. The only legal means of communication is through the calls and plays themselves, rather than through mannerisms such as tone of voice and hesitations. Often generalized as communications in both senses.Comparative scoring The... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Competitive auction A bidding sequence which involves both partnerships. Also, competitive bidding.
Concession A statement by a player as to the number of remaining tricks that he must lose. See also Claim.
Condone To act after an opponent's irregularity without arranging for the penalty specified in the Laws to be app... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Constructive raise: by partnership agreement, a single raise of a major suit opening that shows more strength than usual.ContractThe statement of the pair who has won the bidding, that they will take at least the stated number of tricks. The contract consists of two components: the level, stating the number of tricks t... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Short for contract bridge in contrast to auction bridge (auction) and other card games in the family.ControlA feature of a hand which prevents the defenders from taking sufficient immediate tricks in a specific suit so as to set the contract or make the setting of the contract unavoidable. Aces are termed "first-round"... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | (Said of trump contracts) Declarer's ability to manage the trump suit successfully. To lose control usually means being forced to shorten one's trumps so much that the opponents can subsequently control the play of the hand. See Forcing defense.Control-bid A bid that shows control of a particular suit. Often a cue bid,... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Any of several specific play techniques, such as the Scissors coup, Trump coup, Devil's coup or Vienna coup.Coup en passant The lead of a side suit in which both second and third hands are void, second hand holding a high trump, in such a way that third hand cannot be prevented from taking a trick with a low trump. It ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Coup without a name See Scissors coup. "Coup without a name" is an earlier term for the coup, conferred by Ely Culbertson.
Cover card A card (honor or extra trump) which is known to compensate one of partner's losers; for example, a king in trumps covers partner's trump loser.
Crack (Slang, verb). To make a penalty dou... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Crash(Usually written CRASH or CRaSh) Acronym for Color, RAnk and SHape; a convention showing a 2-suited hand, as an overcall at first opportunity after an opponent's strong artificial 1♣, 1♦, 2♣ or 2♦ opening. The two suits share the same color (red or black), rank (majors, or minors) or shape (rounded or pointed). Th... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | (Uncapitalised) The play of two winners by a pair on a single trick: for example, the ace and king of trumps. This usually involves a declarer's use of a deceptive play to cause a defender to follow suit with one high card (for example, the king from Kx when the other defender holds the singleton ace).Crocodile coup On... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Cross To enter the opposite hand. Normally used of dummy or declarer's hand: "He crossed to dummy in diamonds." Crossruff A playing technique in trump contracts, where extra tricks are gained by ruffing in both hands alternately.
Cross-IMP scoring A form of IMP scoring in pairs tournaments, where each pair's score is d... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | A bid that shows a control in a suit (usually with an ace or king, sometimes with a void), but does not indicate length or strength in the suit otherwise. See control bid. Partnership agreements indicate when in an uncontested auction a bid is considered a cuebid. Usually used in exploring for a slam contract (see Brid... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Culbertson system The earliest dominant bidding system, developed by Ely and Josephine Culbertson. Its principal features were an approach–forcing bidding style, four-card majors, strong two-bids and the use of an honor trick table to evaluate hand strength.
Curse of Scotland The ♦9. The origin of the term is uncertain... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Cut in and cut out In rubber bridge, it is customary on completion of a rubber to invite other players in the cardroom to play in the next one, often by a cry of "Table up". The players in the completed rubber draw cards to determine who will withdraw; the one or more who draw the lowest card or cards are said to cut o... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | C | Cutthroat bridge A form of three-handed bridge. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | DAB An abbreviation of directional asking bid.
Danger handAn opponent who, if he obtains the lead, can damage declarer's prospects. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | When defending, either declarer's or dummy's hand which, if it gains the lead, can damage the defenders' prospects.Datum The mean or median of raw scores on a deal. The datum is used as a basis for calculating IMPs for the participating teams or pairs. The datum may be trimmed by removing extreme scores at either end o... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | DeadA hand that has no card of entry, usually in reference to the dummy.
A hand that has a suit consisting only of low cards of no significance. For example, two dead spades.DealOne particular allocation of 52 cards to the four players including the bidding, the play of the cards and the scoring based on those cards. A... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | (Verb) To allocate the 52 cards to the four players or hands, 13 each.Dealer The player who makes the first call in the auction. In some versions of the game, this player also deals the cards. In rubber bridge, the first dealer is usually decided by a cut for the highest card. In duplicate bridge, cards are dealt only ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Deck The 52 cards used in bridge.
Declaration The contract in which a hand is played.
Declarative–Interrogative D–I. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Declarer Of the partnership that makes the final bid in the auction, declarer is the partner who first names the denomination or strain of the final bid, thus the strain of the contract. During the play, declarer sits across from the dummy and calls for cards from the dummy's hand, or "plays the dummy." Declaring side ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Deep finesse A finesse against two or more cards.
The trade name of a commercially available computer program which performs double dummy hand analysis.Defeat (Said of the contract). To prevent declarer from taking the number of tricks called for by his contract. Also, set.
Defence Declarer's opponents or their line of... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Denomination (or strain) Component of a bid that denotes the proposed trump suit or notrump. Thus, there are five denominations – notrump, spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs. The Laws of Contract Bridge (American edition) and Laws of Duplicate Bridge use the term denomination exclusively but "the modern term is strain"... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | DEPO Acronym for Double Even, Pass Odd. Conventional method for bidding over interference with Blackwood.
Deschapelles coup On defense, the lead of an unsupported honor in order to create an entry to partner's hand.
Deuce The lowest spot card, the 2. In signaling, it is the only unambiguous card.
Develop To establish t... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Director Also tournament director (TD). The referee (in duplicate bridge). The director enforces the rules, assigns penalties for violations, and oversees the progress of the game. The director may also be responsible for the final scoring. In a large tournament there may be several directors reporting to a Head Direct... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Discard(Verb) To play a card that is neither of the suit led, nor trump, and that therefore cannot win the trick.
(Noun) The card so played.Discouraging card A carding signal that discourages partner from leading a particular suit. Contrast Come-on.
Discovery play A play, either by declarer or by the defense, intended ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | (Hand distribution, also shape or pattern) Of one 13-card hand on a deal, the numbers of cards or lengths in the four suits. Sometimes the length of one or two suits is known or presumed and "distribution" covers only three or two suits, as "distribution in the minors" said of one hand whose major-suit distribution is ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Specific. Either way, four whole numbers that sum to 13 are commonly used to denote a distribution briefly, such as 4333 or 4–3–3–3 for a hand comprising one four-card suit and three three-card suits; or for a suit with one four-card holding and three three-card holdings in the four hands. Also 22 or 2–2 for the opposi... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Fully specified. Conventionally neither 4333 nor 4–3–3–3 indicates which is the four-card suit in a hand while 4=3=3=3 means four spades, represented first, and three each in hearts, diamonds, and clubs. Thus 4=6=2=1 means 4 spades, 6 hearts, 2 diamonds, and 1 club.Distribution points A measure of one hand's strength d... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | DONT Acronym for Disturb Opponents Notrump. A conventional defense to notrump opening bids.
DOPE Acronym for Double Odd, Pass Even. A conventional method for bidding over interference with Blackwood. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | DOPI A proxi-acronym for Double, O (the letter O standing for zero or none), Pass and I (the capital i standing for the numeral 1 or one). A conventional method for bidding over interference with Blackwood. Pronounced "dopey." Double A call that increases penalties if the opponents fail to make their contract, but cons... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | A call having various alternative conventional meanings depending upon the bidding context. See Informatory double, Takeout double, Negative double, Lead-directing double, Responsive double and Support double.Double dummy (Adjective or adverb.) Said of a play or line of play that seems to be made with knowledge of all ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | When said of the defenders jointly, "double dummy defense" suggests that that pair knows all four hands and agrees on both goals and tactics such as falsecards, as if the cards were visible and they discussed those points.
Double dummy problem A bridge problem presented for entertainment or teaching, in which the solve... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Duplicate bridge A form of bridge where every deal is played at several tables, by several pairs, and their scores on each deal are subsequently compared. A minimum of two tables (four pairs) are required for a duplicate bridge event. Each entry might be a pair, or a team consisting of two or more pairs; the type of sc... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Duplication of values Possession of values in the same suit in both partners' hands so arranged that they do not pull their full weight. (1) High card values in one hand and a singleton or void in the other; e.g. ♠KJ9 facing a void is much less useful than ♠KJ9 facing ♠Q4. (2) High cards in short suits in both hands, e... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | D | Dustbin Notrump A bidding response of 1NT to an opening bid that doesn't show a balanced hand but a weak hand (6–9 HCP), no support for partner and no higher ranking 4+ card suit to bid. So the hand could be unbalanced. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Eastern Scientific A bidding style that developed in the Eastern United States, particularly the New York region. It is characterized by five-card majors with a forcing one "notrump" response and limit raises, strong notrump with Jacoby transfers, and strong (but not game forcing) two-over-one responses.
Eau de cologne... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Eight ever, nine never A bridge maxim that advises players when to finesse for a missing queen. With eight cards in the suit, always ("ever") finesse; but with nine cards, never finesse, rather play for the queen to drop under the play of the ace and king. Experienced players often ignore this advice in favor of consid... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | EKB Exclusion Keycard Blackwood, a variant of Roman Keycard Blackwood. EKB uses a suit bid rather than a notrump bid to show a void in that suit and to exclude the named suit ace from the count of keycards.
Elimination The removal, by playing a suit or suits, of safe exit cards from defenders' hands, normally in prepar... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Encrypted An agreement that the meaning of bids or card signals may change as more information about a deal becomes available. For example, when declarer shows out of a suit, the defenders can tell whether the rank of West's lowest remaining card in the suit is even or odd (and declarer probably does not have that info... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Ending The layout of the cards when just a few tricks remain to be played. In a "four-card ending", each player has four cards left. Such positions can be of special interest because squeezes and other endplays tend to occur near the end of the play. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Endplay A play which forces a particular opponent to win a trick, so that that opponent must then make a favorable lead. That player is said to be "endplayed". Normally, the player who is endplayed is a defender. Although the word implies that the play occurs toward the end of a hand, it often occurs earlier, and in ex... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | To make the first call for a partnership after the opponents have bid.
To join a bridge competition.EntryA card that allows a particular hand to win a trick that partner or an opponent has led to. Entries are vital to communication.
A seating assignment in a bridge competition. Entries designate the participants' initi... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Equal level conversion (ELC) An agreement concerning rebids after take-out doubles. Traditionally, the bid of a new suit by the player who has made a take-out double is considered forcing. Under the equal level conversion agreement, the bid of a new suit by the doubler is not forcing if it is at the same level as advan... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | E | Equals Cards in one hand that are adjacent in rank and thus have equal trick-taking power.
Escape suit A long suit to which a bidder can escape if necessary or desirable. The bidder of a comic notrump might run to his long suit if doubled.
Establish To make winners of the remaining cards in a suit by playing or forcing... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | F1 Forcing one round. See One round force.
Face(Noun) The front of a card; the side that displays its suit and rank.
(Verb) To turn a card so that its face is visible to other players.Face card A king, queen, or jack. Contrast Honor. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Factoring The adjustment of matchpoint scores to correct for dissimilar conditions. For example, a game played with a Mitchell movement might have an extra N–S pair, causing a bye round for N–S. The top is therefore lower for N–S pairs than for E–W pairs, and the N-S scores are multiplied by a fraction (or "factor") to... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Fall To be captured by a higher card. See drop.
False preference A return to partner's first-bid suit despite a longer holding in the second suit. Usually intended to give partner an opportunity for another bid.
False sacrifice Phantom sacrifice.
Falsecard A card played with the intention of deceiving an opponent as to... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Force to To bid with the intention of causing the bidding to proceed to a particular level. For example: "In this auction, 2♣ forced to game", or "My reverse forced to the three-level." Forcing bid A bid that, by partnership understanding, requires the bidder's partner to make another bid. A forcing bid is not necessar... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | See also Game force, Grand slam force and One round force.
Forcing defense The lead and subsequent continuation of a suit that the defenders believe declarer will have to ruff in the long trump hand. The strategy is to shorten declarer's trump holding so as to leave the defenders in control of the hand. See Tap.
Forcin... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Four-card majors An agreement that an opening bid of 1♥ or 1♠ promises at least four cards in the suit bid. The usual alternative is five-card majors. The four-card major agreement was standard during the first four decades of contract bridge, but has since given way to five-card majors in most "standard" systems such ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Four-deal bridge See Chicago.
FourthA player needed to complete a table, usually said of rubber bridge.
Of four-card suit length: for example, Q987 is referred to as "queen fourth" or "queen-fourth".Fourth hand The fourth player with an opportunity to bid, or to play to a trick.
Fourth suit forcing (FSF, or 4SF)The ini... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | An agreement that the partnership's bid of the fourth suit, in addition to its forcing nature, is possibly artificial.Fragment A holding of three or even two cards in a suit, thus not long enough to suggest as a trump suit. A partnership may treat the bid of a fragment as a means of implying shortness in another suit (... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Fragment bid A second-round jump bid (usually a double jump) that by agreement shows a fit with partner's last-bid suit and shortness in another suit. Under this agreement, in 1♣ – 1♥; 3♠ the bid of 3♠ is a fragment bid, showing a fit for hearts and a singleton or void in diamonds. The suit of the fragment bid is often... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Freak, or freak hand A hand with a very long suit or suits. Most would regard a hand with two six card suits as a freak.
Free bid A bid that is made when a pass would still allow partner to make a bid. Normally used of a bid that is made after partner has opened the bidding and RHO has overcalled. Compare with Negative... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | F | Free finesse A position in which a player leads up to an opponent's tenace, solving that opponent's possible guess. The term is normally used when the player is forced to make that lead.Frozen A frozen suit is one that neither side can play without damage to its own holding in the suit. Declarer can sometimes duck the ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | G | Gambling 3NT An opening bid of 3NT. The bidder hopes to make the contract by means of a long minor suit rather than by a preponderance of high cards. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | G | Game A contract, bid and made, worth 100 points or more. The undoubled game contracts are 3NT (40 for the first trick + 30 each for the second and third); 4♥ and 4♠ in the majors (4 tricks × 30 points per trick); 5♣ and 5♦ in the minors (5 tricks × 20 points per trick). Game can also be made via a doubled or redoubled ... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | G | In rubber bridge and Chicago, a score of 100 or more points below the line, achieved either by making a game contract or by converting a part score.Game force (GF or FG) A bid that asks partner not to pass before the partnership's bidding has reached game (or the opponents have been doubled at a level high enough to co... |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | G | See also Forcing bid, Grand slam force and One round force. |
Glossary of contract bridge terms | G | Game try A bid that invites partner to bid game in a particular suit, made when a fit in that suit is known more than one level below game. Routinely the occasion a single raise from one to two of a major, as both 1S – 2S and 1C – 1S – 2S (opponents silent). In those two auctions all five bids from 2N to 3S are potenti... |
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