When you play solitaire card games, you will come across some terms that you may not be familiar with, but that can help you understand and appreciate the game.
Ascending sequence
A series of cards that increases in value (for example, 9-10-J).
Building
Play one card (or group of cards) over another, according to the rules of the game. The construction can be specified one or more of several ways, according to the rules of a particular game:
- By alternate color: build red on black, or black on red, of the suit
- By color: build red on red or black on black, regardless of suit
- By suit: cards must be played in a sequence of the same suit
- Down – Cards must be played in descending rank sequence
- Regardless of suit – build using rank only, ignoring color and suit
- Above: Cards must be played in an ascending rank sequence
Colour
A standard deck has two colors: hearts and diamonds are red, clubs and spades are black.
Column
A vertical pile or group of cards.
Treatment
Turn over the cards in the deck and place them on the layout.
Platform
Most games use a standard 52-card deck with no jokers. There are also many games that use two shuffled 52-card decks. Some games use non-standard or chopped decks.
Descending sequence
A series of cards whose value decreases (for example, J-10-9).
Discard
Cards permanently removed from the game.
Face card
A king, a queen, or a jack.
Foundation
This is the final destination of the cards in many games. The fundamentals can be part of the original design, or they can be created during the game, according to the rules of the particular games.
Hand
Cards remaining after a layout has been dealt. Generally, a hand must be kept face down until called in the game.
Design
The starting order or placement of the cards on the table (or screen). The layout includes the stock, scrap pile, foundation, box, and reserve.
Package
Another name for a deck of cards.
Patience
A card game for one player. Known as “loner” in America.
Rank
The numerical order of the cards is generally A-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-JQK, with the ace in the lowest position and the king in the highest position. In some games, the ranking is continuous: down from 3-2-A to KQJ, or up from JQK to A-2-3. Also, in some games, the ace is ranked above the king. In other games, the ace can be ranked top or bottom as the player chooses.
Redeal
Collect cards of the design and redistribute them. In some games, the cards must be collected in a specific order. Also, in some games the cards are shuffled between exchanges and in others they are not.
reservation
Some games include a reserve, which is usually prefilled with cards from the stock during the initial deal. These cards can often only be removed from the pool in specific ways, which vary from game to game.
Row
A horizontal stack or group of cards.
Shuffle
Randomize the cards in a deck. This is usually done by hand, dividing the deck into halves and then putting them back together a few times. A mechanical card shuffler can also be used. In computer solitaire, mixing is done using a random number generator.
Lonely
A card game for one player. Known as “patience” in England.
Values
Where the cards are dealt from. At the beginning of a hand, the action contains the entire deck (or decks). In general, the cards are removed from the stock and played to the ground, the square, or the waste, until the stock is empty.
Go on
A standard deck of playing cards has four suits: hearts ?, diamonds ?, clubs ?, and spades ?. Each suit has 13 cards (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A).
Picture
Individual cards, groups of cards, or stacks of cards, each of which can be manipulated as described in each game. The box is generally the part of each game that gives it its own distinctive flavor.
Value
The numerical value of a letter. For number cards, the value is simply the face value of the card (2, 3, 4, etc.). For the other cards, the ace generally has a value of 1, a jack has a value of 11, a queen has a value of 12, and a king has a value of 13.
Garbage pile
In many games, if a card cannot be played on a base or tableau pile, it is moved to a waste pile.
Victorious
This varies by game, but generally involves: putting all the cards in a predefined order; filling the foundation; or removing all the cards from the box.