Glossary Of Game Specific Terms
14.1 Continuous
High Run | The greatest number of balls scored in a players one inning.
In the Rack | An object ball that would interfere with the racking of the object balls .
KEY BALL | The 14th ball of each rack; called the key ball because it is so critical in obtaining position for the all important first (or break) shot of each reracking of the balls.
Bank Pocket Billiards
CLEAN BANK | A shot in which the object ball being played does not touch any other object balls (i.e., no kisses, no combinations).
Carom Games
AROUND THE TABLE | Describes shots in which the cue ball contacts three or more cushions, usually including the two short cushions, in an effort to score.
BIG BALL | A carom billiards metaphor, it refers to an object ball positioned and being approached in such a manner that a near miss will rebound off a cushion and still score.
BILLIARD | A count or score; a successful shot.
CLEAR BALL | The all-white ball, devoid of any markings, used in carom games. (See spot ball)
CROSS TABLE SHOT | Shot in which scoring is accomplished by driving the cue ball across the table between the long cushion.
CROTCH | The corner area of a carom table in straight-rail billiards in which a player may score no more than three successive counts with the balls before driving at least one object ball out of the area. The four crotches are defined as those spaces within crotch lines drawn between first diamond on the end rail to the second diamond on the side rail.
GATHER SHOT | A shot on which appropriate technique and speed are employed to drive one or more balls away from the other(s) in such a manner that when the stroke is complete, the balls have come back together closely enough to present a comparatively easy scoring opportunity for the next shot.
LAG | A shot in which the cue ball is shot three or more cushions before contacting the object balls.
NATURAL | A shot with only natural angle and stroke required for successful execution; a simple or easily visualized, and accomplished, scoring opportunity.
NURSES | Techniques whereby the balls are kept close to the cushions and each other, creating a succession of relatively easy scoring opportunities.
RED BALL | The red-colored object ball. (Also the name of a particular 3-cushion billiard game.)
SCRATCH | To score a point largely by accident, due to an unanticipated kiss, unplanned time-shot, etc.
SNAKE | A shot in which the use of english causes the cue ball to make three or more cushion contacts, though utilizing only two different cushions. Also called a double-the-rail shot.
SPOT BALL | The white ball differentiated from the clear by on or more markings; usually spots, dots or circles.
TICKIE | A common shot in carom games. The cue ball is driven first to a rail, then hits an object ball and kisses back to the same rail.
YELLOW BALL | In international competition the spot ball has been replaced by a yellow ball without any markings.
Forty-One Pocket Billiards
BURST | Scoring a total of more than 41 points.
Pocket Games
BIG | Also bigs, big balls, big ones. In eight ball, to be shooting the stripped suit(group) of balls (9 through 15); (e.g. "you're big, remember", "you're big balls" or "I've got the big ones". Compare stripes, yellows, high; contrast little. not to be confused with the carom billiards concept of a big ball.
BIG POCKET | It is a metaphor for a shot that is very difficult to miss pocketing for any of a number of reasons, most commonly either because the object ball is positioned such that a near miss on one side of it will likely cause the cue ball to rebound into the object ball off of the rail and pocket it anyway, or another ball is positioned such that if the target ball does not go straight in, it is still likely to go in off of the other ball in a kiss.
BOTTLE | A specially shaped leather or plastic container used in various games. (Also called the shake bottle)
HIGH | In eight ball, to be shooting the striped suit (group) of balls (9 through 15); "you're high balls" or "I've got the highs" ("you're high" is rare, because of the "intoxication ambiguity). Compare stripes, yellows, big ones; contrast low. In snooker it is the same as "above".
Jawed Ball | A ball that fails to fall into the pocket because it bounces back and forth against the jaws of a pocket.
LITTLE | Also littles, little ones, little balls. in eight ball, to be shooting the solid suit (group) of balls (1 through 7); "you're little, remember", "you're the little balls" or "I've got the littles". Compare small, solids, reds, low, spots, dots; contrast big.
LOW | Also lows, low balls, low ones. In eight ball, to be shooting the solid suit (group) of balls (1 through 7); "you're low, remember", "you're low balls" or "I've got the lows". Compare solids, reds, little spots, dots; contrast high.
NATURAL | An easy shot requiring no english.
PEAS | Small plastic or wooden balls numbered 1 through 15 or 16, use defined in specific games rules. (Called pills.)
PILLS | See peas.
SHAKE BOTTLE | See bottle.
SHORT-RACK | Games which utilize fewer than 15 countable object balls.
SMALL | Also smalls, small ones, small balls. In eight ball to be shooting the solid suit (group) of balls (1 through 7); "you're the small one" or "I've got the smalls". Compare little, solids, reds, low, spots, dots; contrast big.
SOLIDS | Also solid, solid ones, solid balls. The non-striped ball suit (group) of a fifteen ball set that are numbered 1 through 7 and have a solid color scheme (i.e., not including the 8 ball). As in, "I'm solid", "you've got the solids". Compare low, small, little, reds, spots, dots; contrast stripes.
SPOT | In UK eight ball, (when not playing with a reds-and-yellows color ball set) any of the group of seven balls, other than the eight, that are a solid color with just a circle number on the surface. In the US, these balls are usually referred to as solids or more colloquially as lows, littles or smalls. Another UK terms is dots. Contrast stripes.
STRIPES | Also striped ones, stripes balls. the ball suit (group) of a fifteen ball set that are numbered 9 through 15 and have a wide colored bar around the middle. Compare bigs, highs, yellows; contrast solids.
Snooker
ABOVE | Used in snooker in reference to the position of the cue ball. It is above the object ball if it off-straight on the baulk cushion side of the imaginary line for a straight pot (e.g. "he'll want to finish above the blue in order to go into the pink and reds"). It is also common to use the term high instead.
BALL ON | A colored (non-red) ball a player intends to legally pocket; same as on ball.
BAULK | The intervening space between the bottom cushion and the Baulk-line.
BAULK CUSHION | The cushion opposite the top cushion and bounded the yellow and green pockets.
BAULK COLOR | Any of the three color balls that get spotted on the baulk line: the yellow, green or brown ball.
BAULK-LINE | A straight line drawn 29" from the face of the bottom cushion and parallel to it.
BELOW | In reference to the position of the cue ball. It is "below" the object ball if it is off-straight on the top cushion side of the imaginary line for a straight pot (e.g. he'll want to finish below the black in order to go into the reds).
BOTTOM CUSHION | The cushion located at the head of a snooker table--closest to the D.
BREAK | Total scored in one inning.
BROWN | The Highest value baulk color, being worth 4 points.
CENTURY | A break of 100 points or more, which involves potting at least 26 balls consecutively.
COMBINATION ON | See plant.
COLOR BALL | Any of the object balls that are not reds. A color ball must be potted after each red in the continuation of a break, and are re-spotted until the reds run out, after which the colors must be potted in their order: yellow(2 points; green(3 points); brown(4 points); blue(5 points); pink(6 points); black(7 points). 2. In WEPF/UK eight ball, a generic, collective term for the red and yellow groups of object balls, corresponding to the solids and stripes, respectively.
CUE BALL IN HAND WITHIN THE D | See cue ball in hand within the half-circle.
CUE BALL IN HAND WITHIN THE HALF-CIRCLE | The cue ball is in hand within the half-circle when it has entered a pocket or has been forced off the table. The base of the cue ball may be placed anywhere within or on the half-circle. It remains in hand until the player strikes the cue ball with the tip of the cue or a foul is committed while the ball is on the table.
D. | An area, semi-circular in shape, with the straight side formed by the line drawn between the spot for the yellow and the spot for the green measured 29 inches out from the face of the bottom cushion (sometimes referred to as the baulk line) and the semi-circle is determined by the size of the table being used.
FRAME | The equivalent of one game in snooker.
FREE BALL | After a foul, if the cue ball is snookered, the referee shall state "Free Ball." If the non-offending player takes the next stroke he may nominate any ball as on, and for this stroke, such ball shall be regarded as, and acquire the value of, the ball on.
GREEN BALL | The color ball that is worth three points, being the second-least valuable color behind the yellow. It is one of the baulk colors.
GREEN POCKET | The pocket in snooker that is closest to the green spot.
HALF-CENTURY | A break of 50-99 points (100 points or more being called a century), which involves potting at least 12 consecutive balls.
HOOK REST | A type of mechanical bridge that has only recently been endorsed by the WPBSA to allow its use in major tournament play. It is normal rest with the head in line with the shaft, but the last foot or so of the shaft is curved. This allows players to position the curved end around an obstructing ball that would have otherwise left them hampered on the cue ball and in need of a spider or swan with extensions, which would have less control.
IN-OFF | A losing hazard; that is, when the cue ball enters a pocket. The snooker equivalent of a scratch.
LOSING HAZARD | Occurs when the cue ball is pocketed after contact with an object ball.
MAXIMUM | The highest break attainable with the balls that are racked; usually 147 points starting by potting 15 reds, in combination with blacks, and clearing the colors.
MISS | The call the referee makes in snooker if it is judged the player has not endeavored to the best of his ability to hit the ball on.
ON BALL | See ball on.
PACK | The bunch of reds that are typically left below the pick spot in the early stages of a frame, not including those reds that have been released into pottable positions.
PINK BALL | The second highest value color ball, being worth six points.
PLANT | A position of two or more red balls that allows a ball to be driven into a pocket with a combination shot.
POT | The pocketing of an object ball.
PYRAMID SPOT | The same as the pink spot. The spot is marked midway between the center spot and the face of the top cushion.
RED BALL | Any of the 15 balls worth 1 point each that can be potted in any order. During the course of a break a player must first pot a red followed by a color, and then a red and color, etc., until the reds run out and then the re-spotted six colors must be cleared in their order. Potting more than one red in a single shot is not a foul - the player simply gets a point for each red potted.
RE-RACK | The abandonment of a frame upon agreement between the players, so that the balls can be set up again and the frame restarted with no change to the score since the last completed frame. This is the result of situation, such as trading of containing safeties, where there is not foreseeable change to the pattern of shots being played, so the frame could go on indefinitely.
RE-SPOTTED BLACK | A situation where the scores are tied after all the balls have been potted, and the black ball is re-spotted and the first player to pot it wins. The players toss for the first shot, which must be taken with the cue ball in the D, and a safety battle will ensue until a crucial error or a fluke is made.
SNOOKERED | The condition of incoming player's cue ball position when he cannot shoot in a straight line and contact all portions of an on ball directly facing the cue ball (because of balls not "on" that block the path.
SNOOKERS REQUIRED | Describe the scenario whereby there are not enough available points on the table to level the scores for the frame, therefore the trailing player needs his/her opponent to foul in order to be able to make up the deficit. The name comes from the fact that this would normally have to be achieved by placing the leading player in foul-prone situations such as difficult snookers.
SPOT (noun) | Any of the six designated points on the table on which a color ball is replaced after it has left the playing surface (usually after it has been potted).
SPOT (verb) | Return a color ball to its designated spot on the table. Also called re-spot.
STRIKER | The player who is about to shoot and has yet to complete his inning.
TOP CUSHION | The cushion located at the foot of a snooker table--closest to the black spot.
TOTAL CLEARANCE | A term used for the potting of all the balls that are racked at the beginning of the frame in a single break. The minimum total clearance affords 72 points. See also maximum.
TOUCHING BALL | Where the cue ball is resting in contact with another ball. If this ball is a ball that may legally be hit, then it is allowable to simply hit away from it and it counts as having hit it in the shot. If the ball moves, then a push must have occurred, in which case it is a foul.
YELLOW BALL | The lowest-value color ball on the table, being worth two points. It is one of the baulk colors.
YELLOW POCKET | The pocket nearest the yellow spot.
Snooker Golf
HICKEY | Any foul.
Straight Rail Billiards
CHUCK NURSE | A scoring technique used when one object ball rests against the cushion and the second object ball is to one side of the first ball and away from the cushion. Cue ball strikes the object ball at the cushion so that the cue ball just comes back to touch (carom) the second object ball without moving it out of position for a similar subsequent shot.
CRIBBAGE
CRIBBAGE | A game in which players score "ways" by making series of two balls in succession that have a number value which combined equal 15. For example, the 8 ball and the 7 ball added together equal 15 and make up one "way".
CUTTHROAT
CUTTHROAT | A three person game. Each player claims a set of 5 balls, choosing between sets of the 1 through 5 balls, the 6 through 10 balls and the 11 through 15. The goal is to sink all the balls of both of your opponents while keeping yours on the table. If a player scratches, one previously sank ball of each opponent are brought back into play.
THREE CUSHION BILLIARDS
NATURAL | The most standard shot where the third ball is advantageously placed in a corner.
UMBRELLA SHOT | A three cushion billiards shot in which the cue ball first strike two cushions before hitting the first object ball then hits a third cushion before hitting the second object ball. So called because the shot opens up like an umbrella after hitting the third rail. Umbrella shots may be classified as inside or outside depending on which side of the first object the cue ball contacts.
