Backgammon glossary

Backgammon has its own vocabulary. Here are 80 of the terms you will meet in books, analysis and online play, each with a short, plain definition.

Point numbers are always counted from the side of the player being discussed. If a term needs more than a sentence, follow the link to the full guide. New to the game? Start with how to play, then come back here whenever a word is unfamiliar.

A

Ace-point

The 1-point: the last point in a home board, furthest along for the player who owns it.

Ace-point game

A game in which one player, well behind, holds only their opponent's ace-point and hopes for a late shot as the opponent bears in and bears off. Strategy

Acey-deucey

A variant in which all checkers start off the board and a roll of 1-2 earns extra moves and another turn. Variants

Anchor

A point you hold with two or more checkers in your opponent's home board. An anchor gives your back checkers a safe landing spot and a base for hitting. Strategy

Automatic double

An optional money-game rule: if the opening roll is a tie, the cube is turned to 2 before play starts. Not used in matches. Doubling cube

B

Back checkers

Your two checkers that start on your 24-point, in your opponent's home board. Also called runners.

Back game

A plan for a player far behind in the race: hold two or more points in the opponent's home board and wait for a shot late in the game. Strategy

Backgammon (result)

A win in which the loser has borne off no checkers and still has a checker on the bar or in the winner's home board. It is worth three times the cube value. How to play

Bar

The raised strip in the middle of the board. Hit checkers are placed on the bar and must re-enter from there before their owner can move anything else. How to play

Bar point

The 7-point, the first point outside a player's home board, next to the bar.

Bear in

To bring your checkers into your home board, in preparation for bearing off.

Bear off

To remove checkers from the board once all fifteen are in your home board. The first player to bear off all fifteen wins. Bearing off

Beaver

An optional money-game rule: a player who is doubled may immediately redouble while keeping the cube on their side. Not used in matches. Doubling cube

Blitz

An all-out attack: hitting your opponent's checkers in your home board and making points quickly, aiming to close them out. Strategy

Block

A group of made points that stops opposing checkers from moving past. Six in a row is a prime.

Blot

A single checker alone on a point. A blot can be hit.

Boxcars

A roll of 6-6.

Builder

A checker within six pips or so of a point you want to make, ready to help make it on a later roll.

C

Centered cube

The doubling cube at the start of a game, on 1 and owned by neither player. Either player may make the first double. Doubling cube

Checker

One of the fifteen playing pieces each player has. Also called men, stones or pieces.

Chouette

A format for three or more players: one player (the box) plays against a team led by a captain, and players rotate after each game.

Close out

To make all six points of your home board while an opposing checker is on the bar, so it cannot enter at all.

Combination shot

A shot that hits only by using both dice with one checker (or several steps of a double), as opposed to a direct shot. Odds and probabilities

Contact

A position where the two sides' checkers have not fully passed each other, so hitting is still possible. The opposite of a race.

Crawford game

The one game in a match played without the doubling cube, immediately after a player first reaches one point short of winning. Match play

Crawford rule

The match rule that creates the Crawford game. It is standard in tournaments and online play. Match play

Crossover

Moving a checker from one quarter of the board into the next. Counting crossovers helps plan an efficient bear-in. Pip counting

Cube

Short for the doubling cube, a die marked 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64 used to raise the stakes of a game. Doubling cube

Cube ownership

After you accept a double, you own the cube: only you may make the next double (a redouble). Doubling cube

D

Dance

To fail to enter a checker from the bar because both numbers rolled are blocked. Odds and probabilities

Direct shot

A shot at a blot six or fewer pips away, which can be hit with a single die. Odds and probabilities

Double

To offer to play the rest of the game for twice the current stake, by turning the doubling cube. The opponent must take or drop. Doubling cube

Double match point

The score when both players need one point to win the match. The next game decides it and the cube is irrelevant. Match play

Drop

To refuse a double. You concede the game and lose the stake as it was before the double. Also called pass. Doubling cube

Duplication

Arranging your checkers so that the numbers your opponent needs for different good rolls are the same, which reduces the number of rolls that work for them. Strategy

E

Enter

To bring a checker from the bar into your opponent's home board, on the point matching one of your dice. How to play

Equity

The value of a position: in money play, how much you expect to win or lose per unit of stake on average; in a match, your chance of winning the match.

G

Gammon

A win in which the loser has not borne off any checkers. It is worth twice the cube value. How to play

Golden point

The 5-point, the most valuable point to make early in the game. Opening moves

H

Hit

To land on a point occupied by a single opposing checker, sending it to the bar. How to play

Holding game

A plan built around keeping an anchor in your opponent's board, usually on their 5, 4 or bar point, while waiting for a shot. Strategy

Home board

The quarter of the board containing your 1 to 6-points, where you bear off from. Also called the inner board.

Hypergammon

A variant played with three checkers each. Variants

I

Indirect shot

Another name for a combination shot: a blot seven or more pips away, or one that can only be hit with both dice. Odds and probabilities

Inner board

Another name for the home board.

J

Jacoby rule

A money-game rule under which gammons and backgammons count only as single games unless the cube has been turned. Not used in matches. Doubling cube

L

Lover's leap

The opening 6-5 played 24/13, running a back checker all the way to the midpoint. Opening moves

M

Match

A series of games played until one player reaches an agreed number of points. Match play

Match equity

Your chance of winning a match from a given score. Match equity tables list it for every score. Match play

Midpoint

The 13-point, where five of your checkers start, in your opponent's outer board.

Money game

A game played for a stake per point rather than as part of a match, where each game stands on its own. Doubling cube

N

Nackgammon

A variant with a different starting position that puts four checkers in the back, leading to longer, more complex games. Variants

O

On roll

The player whose turn it is to roll the dice.

Opening roll

The first roll of the game. Each player rolls one die and the higher number moves first, using both dice. Ties are rolled again. Opening moves

Outer board

The quarter of the board containing your 7 to 12-points, between your home board and the midpoint.

Outfield

The two outer boards together, the middle area of the board.

P

Pip

One point of distance. Moving a checker from the 8-point to the 5-point covers three pips. Pip counting

Pip count

The total number of pips a player needs to bear off all their checkers. Each side starts with 167. Pip counting

Point

One of the 24 triangles on the board. A point is also said to be made, or owned, when you have two or more checkers on it.

Point on

To hit a blot and cover the point in the same move, so your checkers make the point where the blot was.

Post-Crawford

The games of a match after the Crawford game. The cube is back in play, and the trailing player usually doubles at once. Match play

Prime

Six consecutive made points. Opposing checkers behind a full prime cannot get past it. Strategy

Priming game

A plan built around making a prime to trap one or more opposing checkers. Strategy

R

Race

A position with no contact left: the checkers have passed each other and the game is decided by speed. Pip counting

Re-enter

Another word for entering a checker from the bar.

Redouble

A double made by the player who owns the cube, raising it to the next value. Doubling cube

Rollout

A way of evaluating a position or play by having a computer play it out many times and averaging the results.

Running game

A plan of getting your back checkers out and home quickly, usually when you are ahead in the race. Strategy

S

Shot

A roll, or the set of rolls, that would hit a blot. Odds and probabilities

Slot

To place a single checker on a point you want to make, hoping to cover it on the next roll before it is hit. Opening moves

Snake eyes

A roll of 1-1.

Split

To separate two checkers on the same point, most often your back checkers on the 24-point. Opening moves

Stack

Many checkers piled on one point. Heavy stacks are inflexible and waste pips.

T

Take

To accept a double and play on for twice the stake, taking ownership of the cube. Doubling cube

Take point

The minimum chance of winning you need to accept a double. In a money game, ignoring gammons and cube ownership, it is 25%. Doubling cube

Tavla

The Turkish name for backgammon. The game is close to standard backgammon, usually played without the doubling cube. Variants

Tavli

The Greek family of backgammon games: portes, plakoto and fevga, often played in rotation. Variants

Tempo

Time. A tempo play, often a hit, takes away part of your opponent's next roll because they must use it to enter from the bar.

Too good

A position so strong that you should not double, because your opponent would drop and you would give up your chances of winning a gammon. Play on for the gammon instead. Doubling cube

W

Wastage

Pips that are rolled but do not help in the bear-off, for example a 6 used to take a checker off the 1-point. Smooth home boards waste fewer pips. Bearing off

The best way to learn the words is to use them. Play a game and name what happens: every blot you leave, every point you make and every double you are offered.

Questions

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