86′d: Getting told by a casino that you are being trespassed from their property. Usually, this is the direct consequence of using your brain to make wise decisions with your money. Sometimes they try and get you to sign paperwork.
Action: The amount of money that’s been bet. Can refer to an aggregate of the total amounts of bets made over a certain period of time, or it can refer to the amount in play on a particular wager. Usually said by a greasy hair host or pitboss, wearing a ROLEX and expensive (looking) suit. “That guy’s giving us good action.”
Advantage: The statistically theoretical edge one side has over the other, usually expressed as a percentage of the wager. Usually the casino has the advantage, but card counting can give the player the advantage.
Advantage Player: A gambler who uses strategy to gain a mathematical advantage over the casino. On one particular session I had been to a casino 2 days in a row. The first day I told them that I was waiting for a poker table and just playing blackjack to kill some time. The next day the pit boss walks up to me and says “You’re not a poker player, you’re an advantage player!” I just winked and smiled.
Back Counting: Counting cards from behind the table as a spectator. Great for negative counts. Sometimes referred to as “wonging”
Back Off: When the casino asks you not to play blackjack anymore. This is usually delivered in the form of a statement like “your game is to strong for us” and sometimes delivered with the good news that “you are welcome to play any other game, just not 21.” Not to be confused with being 86′d.
Bankroll: The amount of funds available for wagering. Sometimes refers to the total amount of money available to gamble with, but can also refer to the amount available in a given playing session or for a given time period.
Basic Strategy: The optimum playing strategy for blackjack. The easiest way to find out if someone knows “basic” is to ask them what to do with a soft 18. If they every tell you anything that is not on the chart or use words like “sometimes”, “usually”, or “depends” you know they are a fraud.
Bet Spread: The amount of the maximum and minimum bets a player is making during a blackjack playing session. A 1-5 bet spread means that the player is betting a minimum of 1 unit per hand and a maximum of 5 units per hand. When counting, the larger the spread the more money you expect to make.
Big Player: A member of a card counting team who makes a big bets when the count is favorable. They depend on “spotters” to call them in. This play is used for cover only. Invented by BJ Hall of Fame member Al Fransesco, made famous by Ken Uston, and the MIT team.
Burn Card: The first card of a new deck after the shuffle and cut. The dealer usually puts this face down in the discard tray. Often times a card is burned when a new dealer comes in.
Camouflage: Any strategy meant to hide the fact that you are adding and subtracting the number one a bunch of times in your head.
Card Counting: A strategy for getting the edge at blackjack by tracking the ratio of high cards to low cards that have already been played. A card counter raises his bet when the deck offers favorable odds to the player, and lowers his bet when the deck offers less-than-favorable odds to the player. There are multiple card counting systems with varying degrees of efficiency.
Cut Card: A plastic card used to cut the deck after shuffling. The dealer reshuffles the deck after reaching the cut card when dealing hands.
DAS: Double After Split (verses: NDAS, which is NO Double After Split). A rule that is a benefit to the player that allowes you to double down after you split a hand.
Deck Penetration: The percentage of cards played out of a deck or a shoe before reshuffling. Referred to as “pen” and is usually the main source of fodder for dirty jokes and references when a group of card counters get together (especially male?).
Deviations: A playing deviation is changing from Basic Strategy at certain times based upon the count.
Griffin Book: A book of suspected card counters and casino “cheaters” provided to casinos by Griffin Investigations. These guys went out of business because they were so poorly run and thought about the game with less simplicity than a caveman thinks about a rock.
HIT 17 
H17) A rule in blackjack that requires the dealer to take a hit when they have a soft 17. Compare this to the Stand 17 rule, which requires the dealer to stand on a soft 17.
NDAS: No Double After Split (verses: DAS=Double After Split)
Risk of Ruin: The mathematical chance of losing one’s entire bankroll. Also referred to as ROR.
Running Count: The total value of the count, positive or negative, at any given time. This is the overall total used to calculate the true count.
Shoe Game: A blackjack game dealt from a shoe. Multiple deck games are almost always shoe games, while many single and double deck games are often dealt by hand.
Stand 17: (s17) A rule in blackjack that requires the dealer to stand when sitting on a Soft 17. Compare this rule to Hit 17, which requires the dealer to hit when sitting on a Soft 17.
True Count: The count per deck. You can calculate this but dividing the running count by the number of decks left to be dealt.
Wonging: To back count and only bet when you have the edge. Named after Stanford Wong.
