Slang — Chess Terms
Published chess terms in this category — explained in plain language by Chesswick.
Beginner
- Bonehead Move Beginner
- A bonehead move is an obvious blunder such as hanging a piece or allowing an elementary tactic that a player of the same strength should spot instantly.
Intermediate
- Eval Copium Intermediate
- Eval copium is the tendency to rationalize a poor engine evaluation by fixating on minor advantages or the chance the opponent will err.
- Exchange Intermediate
- An exchange is a trade of pieces of equal value, most often a rook for a knight or bishop.
- Flag Demon Intermediate
- A flag demon is a player, typically in blitz or bullet, who deliberately steers games into mutual time pressure to win on the clock rather than by checkmate or resignation.
- Flag Hanger Intermediate
- A flag hanger is a player who refuses to resign a lost position in a timed game, continuing solely in hopes that the opponent’s flag will fall before checkmate.
- Flag Lord Intermediate
- A flag lord is an informal term for a player who wins chiefly by forcing the opponent to lose on time rather than by checkmate or resignation.
- Flag Rat Intermediate
- A flag rat is a player who deliberately plays low-quality or random moves quickly in fast time controls, hoping to win on time rather than through superior play.