Learning Baccarat Glossary

Baccarat terms have French, Spanish, and Italian origins. Some of these are generic in terms of general gambling but have a different meaning when it comes to baccarat.

In order to get the most out of baccarat, you need to have an understanding of baccarat lingo.

Action The entire amount you wager during a game.

Banker The dealer or player handling the shoe and deals the hands.

Bankroll The amount of money you are willing to risk in a game.

Burn Card The card discarded from the stack after shuffling and placed in the disposal tray.

Chemin de Fer The French variation of baccarat

Coup This refers to the game sessions in baccarat.

Croupier In the American variety, they serve as the caller and responsible for controlling the flow of the game instead of card dealing.

Cut Divides the stack in two batches after shuffling of cards

Cut Card Solid-colored cards made from plastic handed out to a player for the purpose of cutting the stack of cards after they are shuffled by the dealer.

Dealer In baccarat, dealers are positioned at opposing ends of the table charged with collecting bets of the losers and paying out winners.

Discard Tray The tray where cards removed from the deck is placed.

Down Card A card positioned facing down.

Edge A mathematical advantage that the casino enjoys over the gamblers which is usually translated to percentages

Face Card In baccarat, jack, king, and queen have no value

Flat Bet Similar bets repeatedly made without any changes regardless of the hand

Ladderman An individual who monitors a baccarat game from a chair higher than the table.

Le Grande A French word which denotes a natural 9 in baccarat

Mini-baccarat A variant of American baccarat played on a smaller table similar to a blackjack table.

Natural A card having a value of 8 or 9 which is dealt in the first couple of cards.

Palette This is a tool used to transfer cards from one end of the baccarat table to another.

Shoe A device made of wood where the cards are kept and dealt. It can hold up to eight stacks of cards which makes it convenient to slide a card simultaneously.

Shuffle Up This is a technique of shuffling cards prematurely used by dealers as a measure to harass card counting attempts.

Standoff A situation wherein both banker and player have cards with similar value.

Knowing the language spoken by baccarat players can give you a guarantee that you will get the most out of baccarat.