Like other games, backgammon has a specific vocabulary that can be confusing for a new player. To avoid looking like a rookie during a backgammon discussion at your local club or on an online forum we made you a complete backgammon glossary by category.
Equipment
Board — The surface on which backgammon is played. Usually designed as a folding case. The board has 24 narrow triangles (points), a central divider (the bar), and four quadrants.
Checkers — The playing pieces. Each player has 15 checkers of a single colour. Also called men or stones.
Dice — Two standard six-sided dice used to determine how many points a checker may move each turn.
Precision dice — Dice that are perfectly calibrated for a truly random roll. Recommended for serious play. Not all backgammon sets include them by default.
Dice cup — A cup used to shake and roll the dice. Required in most tournament play — rolling by hand is generally not permitted.
Baffle box — An alternative to a dice cup. The box is placed on the board and dice are dropped into it, ensuring a fair roll.
Doubling cube — A large die marked with the values 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64. Used to raise the stake of the game during play.
Clock — Used in tournament play to limit thinking time, similar to chess. Each player has a set amount of time per move.
Scoreboard — Used to track match scores. A dedicated backgammon scoreboard typically includes markers for the Crawford game and post-Crawford games.
Board Zones
Point — One of the 24 narrow triangles on the board. Points are numbered 1–24 from each player’s perspective.
Home board — Also called the inner board. Points 1–6 on your side of the board. All 15 checkers must be in your home board before you can bear off.
Outer board — Points 7–12 on your side. The mid-game staging area where checkers are advanced toward home.
Bar — The central ridge dividing the board. Hit checkers are placed on the bar and must re-enter before any other move is made.
Opponent’s home board — Points 19–24 from your perspective (points 1–6 from your opponent’s). Where your back checkers start.
Game Terminology
Blot — A single checker sitting alone on a point. A blot is vulnerable — if your opponent lands on it, the checker is hit and sent to the bar.
Hit — Landing on an opponent’s blot, sending it to the bar.
Shot — An opportunity to hit a blot. A direct shot is when the blot is 1–6 pips away. An indirect shot is when it is 7 or more pips away.
Slot — Placing a single checker on a point with the intention of covering it next turn to make a point. Example: slotting the 5-point.
Make a point — Placing two or more of your own checkers on the same point, blocking your opponent from landing there.
Cover — Moving a second checker onto a slotted point to make it owned (2+ checkers). Covering converts a vulnerable blot into a safe point.
Prime — A series of consecutive points that you own. Opponent checkers cannot pass any point in a prime. A 6-prime is impossible to escape and is the strongest position in backgammon. See: Backgammon Strategy.
Anchor — A point in your opponent’s home board that you own (hold with 2+ checkers). Provides a safe landing spot and prevents your opponent from closing you out.
Builder — A spare checker positioned to help make a new point on the next roll.
Bearing off — Removing your checkers from the board in the final phase of the game. You can only bear off once all 15 checkers are in your home board.
Pip — The unit used to measure how far a checker is from bearing off. Each point moved = 1 pip.
Pip count — The total number of pips (moves) a player needs to bear off all their checkers. The player with the lower pip count is ahead in the race. The standard opening pip count for both players is 167.
Race — The phase of backgammon when both players are simply trying to bring their checkers home as fast as possible, with no more contact between the two sides.
Contact — The state of the game where both players still have checkers that can hit each other. Once all of one player’s checkers have passed all of the opponent’s, contact is over and the game becomes a pure race.
Gammon — A win where the losing player has not borne off a single checker. Worth 2× the cube value.
Backgammon — A win where the losing player has not borne off a single checker AND still has a checker on the bar or in the winner’s home board. Worth 3× the cube value.
Cube Terminology
Double — An offer to raise the stake of the game. Must be offered before rolling. The opponent can take (accept) or pass (concede).
Take — Accepting a double and continuing the game at the new stake. The player who accepts now owns the cube.
Pass (Drop) — Declining a double and conceding the game immediately at the current stake.
Cube ownership — The player who last accepted a double owns the cube and is the only one who can offer the next double.
Recube — A double offered by the player who currently owns the cube, raising the stake again (e.g. from 2 to 4).
Beaver — An optional rule in money games: the player offered a double may immediately redouble while retaining ownership of the cube.
Market loser — A position that becomes so strong after one roll that the opponent would correctly pass a double. Offering the cube before reaching a market loser is critical — waiting too long means losing doubling value.
Crawford rule — In match play, the game immediately after one player reaches match point is played without the doubling cube. This is the Crawford game. After it, the cube returns to normal use.
Jacoby rule (optional, money games) — Gammons and backgammons only count as double or triple if the cube has been turned at least once. Encourages earlier doubling.
Post-Crawford — Any game after the Crawford game in a match. The trailing player should double immediately on the first move.
Strategy Terms
Running game — A strategy focused entirely on racing checkers home as fast as possible. Used when ahead in the pip count.
Blocking game — A strategy built around constructing a prime to trap the opponent’s checkers.
Holding game — A strategy where you anchor in the opponent’s home board and wait for a shot as their checkers run past.
Back game — A last-resort strategy involving holding two or more points in the opponent’s home board to generate multiple shot opportunities.
Timing — The ability to maintain a useful position (such as a prime or back game) without being forced to break it prematurely. Timing is one of the most advanced concepts in backgammon.
Tempo — A positional advantage gained by making a strong move while your opponent is forced to respond defensively.
Equity — The theoretical value of a position, expressed as expected points won or lost. Widely used in analysis software such as XG or GNU Backgammon.
Checker play — Decisions about how to move your checkers, as distinct from cube decisions.
Cube play — Decisions about when to offer a double, when to take, and when to pass.
Gammon price — The value of winning a gammon in a given position. When the gammon price is high, playing aggressively is rewarded even at some extra risk.
Volatility — A measure of how quickly a position can change. High-volatility positions (lots of blots, live shots) favour earlier doubling.
See Also
