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GLOSSARY - H to R

HAND: One game of Bridge. Or the 13 cards held by any player.

HIGH/LOW: Play a high card then a low card. This is a message to partner (hopefully partner is awake and can read the message) that shows an even number in the suit. If done on opening lead it is usually a doubleton.

HOLD UP: The Declarer refuses to win the first (or second or third) trick of a suit led by the defense. This is done in order to break the link between the defenders‘ hands. Do not get the Hold Up and the Duck fowled up: the Duck is to maintain communication between Dummy and Declarer’s hand; while the Hold Up is to break communication between the defenders.

HONORS: The royalty of Bridge: Ace, King, Queen, Jack and even the 10,

INTERNAL SEQUENCE: Any sequence that has a card higher than the highest card of the sequence. (And that highest card is not part of the sequence.)
        EXAMPLE 1: A Q J 10     EXAMPLE 2: K 10 9 8
are Internal Sequences.
     Usually lead the top card of the Internal Sequence. In the Example 1 lead the Queen and in the Example 2 lead the 10. see SEQUENCE.

INVITATIONAL BID: A bid that invites partner to bid game (or Slam) with maximum values and to pass with minimum values.

JORDAN: A bidding convention. After an intervening take out double a bid of 2 No Trump shows 10 + points and a fit in partners suit. A redouble show 10+ points and no fit. This convention is easy to remember and should fit into your bidding repertoire.

JUMP OVERCALL: An overcall that is preemptive in nature (a long suit with two honors and less that 10 points). The salient characteristic of the Jump Overcall is that it skips (or jumps over) a level of bidding.

LHO: Left Hand Opponent. The player on your left who will bid and play after you.

MAJORS/MINORS: The Majors are the two top suits on the bidding ladder: Spades and Hearts. The Minors are the two bottom suits on the bidding ladder: Clubs and Diamonds. As in baseball most bridge players prefer to be in the Majors. The salary is considerably higher.

MAXI PASS: Not something women buy at the drug store. A Maxi Pass is the maximum number of points you could have and not be able to open the bidding. You have just under 13 points: 10, 11 or 12. To show a Maxi Pass make a forcing bid, jump or smile.

MISTAKES: Everybody makes mistakes: your partner, the opponents, friends, relatives, even the President. The important thing is to own the mistake: I did it, me, nobody else, it was my error. Then it is possible to learn from the mistake and avoid repeating it. And the more you play bridge the more advanced the mistakes become. It is impossible, even for experts, to eliminate them totally

OFF THE TOP: A trick or tricks that can be taken without giving up the lead to the opponents.

OPENING BID:   The first player to bid a suit or no trump. If there is more than one Opening Bidder per game please consult your local Bridge doctor.

OPENING LEAD:   A card put face up on the table by the player to the left of the Declarer. Note the difference between this and an Opening Bid: mechanical vs. oral.

OPENING LEADER: The first person to put a card face up on the table and start the play

OPENER’S REBID: The second bid by the Opener. This of course assumes that someone else has bid preferably Opener’s partner. The Rebid gives the Opener a chance to further define his hand.

OVERCALL: A bid made over the opening bidder. This bid can be made from your seat with 10+ points. The suit bid should have five or more cards headed by two honors.

OVERRUFF: Playing a higher trump than one played by the opponent. Can you Overruff an Overruff? Yes, but try not to smile if you over ruff the overruffer. Ruff Ruff.

OVERTAKE:   Playing a card higher than the one played by your side. Hopefully for the purpose of creating an Entry. If that is not the reason you will soon know because your partner will start to squirm, sneer, show displeasure and perhaps even leave the room.

OVERTHERE: A song written by George M. Cohan around the time of World War I.

OVERTRICK:   A trick won by Declarer in excess of the contract. Important factor in Duplicate scoring.

PARTIAL PULL:   Not extracting all of the trumps from the opponents, but leaving some outstanding. (Usually only one.) You can pull all of the trump some of the time, but not some of the trump all of the time.

PARTNER:   Bridge is a partnership game. The player sitting opposite you is your Partner. Winning Bridge players treat their Partners with respect and courtesy at all times. (Even married couples.) They do not criticize; they do not teach. Just in case, do not have any weapons (or heavy objects) with you at the Bridge table.

PART SCORE: Sometimes called a Partial. A contract that is below the level of Game. It could also be the score of that contract.

PASS:    The most common Call in Bridge. Sometimes found around the house and often misused and abused.

PASSED OUT: A deal where none of the four players bid. No need to panic. Life - and Bridge - will go on. Just deal again.

PENALTY: Bonus awarded to the Defenders for defeating a contract.

PENALTY DOUBLE: A Double with the intention of increasing the penalty bonus for defeating the contract. Can be huge. Sometimes even more than the Declarer’s phone number.

PHANTOM SAVE: A sacrifice over an opponent's game or slam that they cannot make. Unfortunately this is found out after the bidding is over and the hand is played. If the opponents are of a decent sort they will refrain from gloating. Gloating is in bad form at the Bridge table and should be discouraged. A large heavy object will sometimes do the trick

PLAY FOR THE DROP: You can facilitate your opponents dropping by adding something to their drink. To get the Queen to drop however, you have to play the Ace then the King.
     If the Queen was originally sitting as a doubleton, Q x, then it would Drop (or fall) under the King.

PRE-EMPTIVE OPENING BID: A bid in a suit of 2 u or higher with a hand containing a long suit and limited high card strength. The purpose of the bid is to interfere with the opponents’ auction.

PROMOTION: Increasing the trick-taking potential of cards as higher ranking cards of the suit are played. If a hand has Q J 10, then any card can become a winner if the Ace and King are played. Note that promotion always involves losing tricks and giving up the lead. So be daring; Promote.

PULL THE DOUBLE: Negating your partners Penalty Double by making a bid. If your partner wants to insure that you do not pull his Penalty Double, he should stand on the chair and yell DOUBLE! There are opponents who might object to this; and some opponents might even quit the game.

PULL TRUMP: Draw trump. Play trump until the opponents have none left. To pull or not to pull; that is the question that declarer asks. Whether 'tis nobler to keep trump out in a sea of trouble or to take arms and extract them. Aye, there's the rub. Who said Shakespeare didn’t play Bridge?

QUICK LOSER: A loser that will be lost as soon as Declarer gives up the lead. A Super Quick Loser (SQL) will be given up even sooner. see SLOW LOSER.

REDOUBLE:   A call that can only be made after an opponent doubles. If the contract is played Redoubled, then the trick score; and the over and under tricks are greater. You can be Redoubled into game. One Spade Doubled/Redoubled is game. Modern bidding methods have extended the use of Redoubles. They appear in third world countries, mostly the Pacific rim nations.

RESPONSE:   The first Bid made by the Partner of the Opening Bidder. The player who makes a Response is the Responder. Makes sense. There is no Respondees in Bridge.

REVERSE:   Reversing the natural order of things by bidding the lower ranking suit first and then the higher ranking one. For a Reverse to be a Reverse the second bid must be at the two level. (Or else it is just a Verse.)
     Thus if you open 1 # and partner responds 1 ! and you rebid 1 $ that is not a Reverse. But if you open 1 u and partner responds 1 $ and you rebid 2 ! then you reversed the order by bidding Diamonds before Hearts and this is a Reverse.
     To make a Reverse you need 16+ points. Why? Because you are asking partner to chose one of your two suits. If partner chooses your lower ranking suit then it has to be bid at the three level.

RUBBER BRIDGE: Bridge played by only four people with a specific method of scoring. To "win the rubber" (not to be confused with being awarded a birth control device) is to win two out of three games. see VULNERABLILITY.

RULE OF ELEVEN: There are lots of rules in Bridge and lots of exceptions to the rules. Maybe more exceptions than rules. Of course if that were really the case the exception would become the rule and the rule become the exception. But for the Rule of Eleven - unless there is an error by your partner - there is no exception. The Rule of Eleven is used after your partner makes the opening lead of the Fourth Best.
     Subtract your partners spot from eleven. This number is the number of cards higher than the card played by your partner. Where are these high cards?   They are either in the Dummy, in Declarer’s hand or in your hand. You should be able to make good use of this information. If not give it to someone who can.