Glossary of backgammon terms

GLOSSARY

Back Checker—A player’s rearmost checker(s).

Backgammon—Bearing off all of one’s checkers while the opponent still has one or more checkers on the bar or in the winner’s inner board. This is worth triple the stake.

Bar—The ridge down the center of a backgammon board, dividing the inner board from the outer board. A checker is placed on the bar when it has been hit.

Bar Point—Your 7-point (or your opponent’s 7-point).

Bearing off—Taking your checkers off the board to end the game.

Block—A point with 2 or more checkers on it. The opponent may not land on this point.

Blot—A checker sitting alone on a point.

Checker—A playing piece. Each side starts with 15 checkers.

Closed Board—Your (or your opponent’s) inner board when all 6 points are blocked, preventing the other player from entering checkers onto the board from the bar.

Dice—Two six-sided cubes with a pip count of 1 through 6 on each of its sides.

Die—Singular of dice.

Double—An offer made at the start of a turn by a player to continue play at twice the current stake. If the opponent declines the double, he loses the current stake.

Doubling cube—A 6-sided die with 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64 on the faces. It is used to indicate how many times a game has been doubled.

Escape—To advance a checker to safety, or past the opponent’s block.

Gammon—Bearing off all one’s checkers before the opponent bears off any. This is worth double the stake.

Hit—Landing on a point where the opponent’s blot sits, sending it to the bar.

Home Board—The quadrant containing your 1-point through your 6-point. You bear off from your home board and your opponent must bring his checkers off the bar into your home board after they are hit.

Inner Board—Home board.

Make a Point—Placing 2 (or more) of your checkers on a point, making it a block.

Outer Board—The side of your board comprising points 7 through 12.

Pip—A dot on a die; also the distance between points. Your 6-point and 3-point are 3 pips apart.

Pip Count—The total number of points a player must move his checkers to bear them off the board and finish the game. Each player’s pip-count at the start of a game is 167.

Point—One of 24 triangles, 12 on each side of the board where the players’ checkers sit.

Prime—6 consecutive points that are blocked by one player. An opponent’s checker can’t pass a prime. A prime on a player’s inner board prevents an opponent with 1 or more checkers on the bar from moving until the prime is broken.

Quadrant—One quarter of the board, consisting of 6 points.

Redouble—An offer of a double other than the first double of the game. It is offered by the player who did not offer the previous double. If accepted by the opponent, play continues at twice the current stake.

Running Game—A game where no more hits can be made. Each player bears off his checkers as fast as possible.

Stake—The amount at risk in a backgammon game. The starting stake of an Internet game is 1 point.