- Big Gin
- Going Gin with all 11 cards (including the drawn card, without discarding). Awards a 31-point bonus in some variants.
- Deadwood
- Cards in your hand that are not part of any meld. The total point value of your deadwood determines whether you can knock and how many points are scored.
- Discard Pile
- The face-up pile where players place one card at the end of each turn. The top card is visible and can be drawn by either player.
- Draw Pile / Stock
- The face-down pile of remaining cards after dealing. Players draw from either the stock or the discard pile on each turn.
- Gin
- When a player forms melds with all 10 cards, leaving zero deadwood. Going Gin earns a 25-point bonus and prevents the opponent from laying off.
- Knock
- Ending a round when your deadwood totals 10 points or fewer. You lay your melds face-up and reveal your deadwood.
- Lay Off
- Adding your unmatched cards onto your opponent's melds after they knock. Not allowed when the opponent goes Gin.
- Meld
- A valid combination of cards: either a set (3-4 cards of the same rank) or a run (3+ consecutive cards of the same suit).
- Run / Sequence
- Three or more consecutive cards of the same suit (e.g., 4♥ 5♥ 6♥).
- Schneider / Shutout
- When the losing player wins zero rounds in the entire game. The winner's total score is doubled.
- Set / Group
- Three or four cards of the same rank (e.g., 7♠ 7♥ 7♦).
- Undercut
- When the non-knocking player has equal or fewer deadwood points than the knocker. The non-knocker scores the difference plus a 25-point bonus.
Ready to put these terms into practice?