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Card game basics
- The standard 52-card deck
- Playing with 32 cards
- Shuffling, cutting and dealing
- Common terms
- Good manners
The standard 52-card deck
A standard deck has 52 cards, split into four suits: ♠ spades, ♥ hearts, ♦ diamonds and ♣ clubs (in German-speaking countries these are called Pik, Herz, Karo and Kreuz). Each suit has the same 13 ranks: Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King.
- Face cards are the Jack, Queen and King – the cards with a picture of a person on them. In some games the Ace also counts as a face card.
- Most decks also include 2 jokers. They are not part of the 52 and are only used in games that call for a wild card.
Playing with 32 cards
Some games (like Mau Mau) use only 32 of the 52 cards: the ranks 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace in each of the four suits, and no jokers.
Example: to turn a 52-card deck into a 32-card deck, take out every 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, and both jokers. What's left – 7 through Ace, four suits – are the 32 cards you play with.
Shuffling, cutting and dealing
- Shuffling mixes the cards into a random order before every deal. The riffle shuffle (splitting the deck in two and interleaving the halves) and the overhand shuffle (letting small packets fall from one hand into the other) are the two most common methods – either is fine as long as the result is random.
- Cutting happens after shuffling: offer the deck to the player on your right, who lifts off a packet and places it on the table; you then put the rest of the deck on top. This stops the dealer from secretly keeping a favourable card on top.
- Dealing means giving out the cards: the dealer deals one card at a time, face down, to each player in turn, moving clockwise around the table, until everyone has the number of cards the game requires. Deal to yourself last.
- After the round, the role of dealer normally moves one seat to the left (clockwise) so everyone gets a turn to deal.
Common terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| hand | the cards you are currently holding |
| draw pile / stock | the face-down pile you draw new cards from |
| discard pile | the pile of cards players have played or thrown away, usually face up |
| face up / face down | whether a card's front (up) or back (down) is showing |
| turn | one player's chance to act before play passes to the next player |
| round | one full cycle in which every player has had a turn, or one complete hand of the game |
| trick | the cards all players play in one round of a trick-taking game; the winner collects them |
| meld | a valid group of cards (e.g. three of a kind, or a run of consecutive cards) that scores points or can be laid down |
| deadwood | the cards left in your hand at the end of a round that don't form a meld – they usually count against you |
| wild card | a card that can stand in for any other card you need |
Good manners
Card games run on trust as much as on rules, so a few habits make every table more pleasant:
- Don't look at other players' cards, even by accident – hold your hand close and angled away from your neighbours.
- Keep your own hand hidden until the rules ask you to reveal it.
- Wait for your turn; don't play or comment on your cards out of turn.
- Shuffle and cut carefully, so everyone trusts the deal was fair.
- If you spot a mistake, say so – don't quietly fix it.
- Win and lose gracefully: no gloating, no sulking.
Once you're comfortable with these basics, pick a game and read its rules – every game on this site builds on what you just learned here.