The vocabulary of Twenty-Five — the technical terms, the slang, and the small bits of Irish card-table language you'll meet on the way in.
Always counts as a trump card, regardless of which suit was turned up.
The Ace of Hearts is permanently a trump in Twenty-Five, ranking third in the trump hierarchy below the 5 of trump and the Jack of trump. It's one of the three cards on which a player can legally renege.
A bidding round before the deal in which players commit to a point total they'll win that hand.
Standard 25 has no auction — trump is set by the turn-up card. The auction round is the defining feature of Auction 45s and is also used in some 25 variants like Auction 25.
A point total a player commits to winning in a hand of an auction-style game.
In Auction 45s and similar variants, each player either passes or bids a number (typically in 5-point increments). The high bidder names trump and must reach their bid that hand or be 'set back' by the bid amount.
Dividing the deck before the deal so the bottom section is placed on top of the top section.
After shuffling, the dealer offers the deck to the player on their right, who cuts it. The cut prevents stacked deals and is traditional even in casual play.
Distributing five cards to each player in batches of 3+2 (or 2+3).
The dealer deals clockwise. After each player has five cards, the next card is turned face-up to set the trump suit. The dealer rotates clockwise after each hand.
The single highest card in any hand of 25.
The 5 of the trump suit beats every other card in the deck — including the Ace of Hearts and the Jack of trump. It can always be reneged: a player is never forced to play it. Holding it back for the right moment is one of the central strategic decisions of the game.
Playing a card of the same suit as the card that led the trick.
Players are required to follow suit if they can. The exception is trump — a player can play a trump at any time. Failing to follow suit when you could is reneging, which is illegal except for the three special cards.
Solo play, with no partnerships — every player for themselves.
The format used most often at three-player and five-player tables. The first player to reach 25 points wins. Without a partner, every trick is a personal trick.
Either the cards a player holds, or one complete round of five tricks.
Context decides the meaning. 'My hand' refers to the cards. 'This hand' usually means the round being played. A game of 25 typically takes five to seven hands.
The mnemonic for non-face-card ranking — high pips beat low in red suits; low pips beat high in black.
In Hearts and Diamonds, higher numbers rank higher (10 beats 9, 9 beats 8, etc.). In Spades and Clubs, lower numbers rank higher (2 beats 3, 3 beats 4, etc.) — except for the face cards, which rank K, Q, J at the top of every suit.
The second-highest card in any hand of 25.
Below only the 5 of trump. The Jack of trump can be reneged unless the 5 of trump is led and the player has no other trump card. Together with the 5 and the Ace of Hearts, it's one of the three 'power cards' of Twenty-Five.
Winning all five tricks in a single hand.
An uncommon, dramatic outcome that often doubles the pot or stake at tables that play for money. Even at non-stake tables, calling 'jink' carries social weight — it's an outright, unanswered hand.
The first card played in a trick.
The lead establishes the suit other players must follow if they can. Whoever wins a trick leads the next. The first lead of each hand is taken by the player to the dealer's left.
An older Irish card game from which Twenty-Five and 45s descend.
Also called Spoil Five. Played as far back as the 16th century. Maw is the source of the unusual card-ranking system shared by 25 and 45s. It's still occasionally played in traditional households, especially in Munster.
An incorrect deal — wrong number of cards, wrong direction, exposed card, etc.
A misdeal voids the deal. The cards are gathered, shuffled again, and re-dealt by the same dealer. Different tables have different conventions for what counts as a misdeal; ask before you call one.
A player on the same team as you in a partnership game.
Partners share a single score. The unspoken rule is: don't trump your partner's winning trick, and don't waste a power card on a hand your partner is already winning. Partnership 25 lives or dies by reading your partner's play.
Refusing to follow suit when you could have. Legal only with the 5/J of trump or the Ace of Hearts; otherwise a serious foul.
Reneging is the privilege of the three power cards. Any other failure to follow suit is illegal — the offending player turns down their hand and stops playing for that round. See the article on reneging for the full rules.
Swapping a card from your hand for the upturned trump card, when you hold the Ace of Trump.
If the dealer turns up an Ace, they must rob immediately. Other players holding the Ace of Trump may rob at the start of their first turn that hand. The cost: the table now knows you hold the Ace of Trump.
Losing points equal to your bid in an auction-style game when you fail to make your bid.
Specific to bidding variants like Auction 45s. If you bid 20 and only score 15, you don't earn the 15 — you lose 20 instead. The penalty is what makes bidding a real decision rather than a free upgrade.
An older name for Maw — the ancestor of both 25 and 45s.
The 'spoil' refers to the rule that a hand is 'spoiled' (no one scores) unless a player wins three or more tricks. Hands can run for several rounds before resolving. See the entry for Maw.
The undealt portion of the deck after every player has been dealt their hand.
Sits face-down on the table during play. The top card of the talon is the turn-up that sets trump. The talon itself is otherwise not used in standard 25.
One round of cards in a hand — each player plays one card; the highest wins.
A hand of 25 contains exactly five tricks, worth 5 points each. The highest card of the led suit wins, unless the trick is trumped — in which case the highest trump wins.
The suit that outranks all others for one hand.
Trump is set by the card turned up after the deal. Any trump card beats any non-trump card, regardless of pip value. The Ace of Hearts is always a trump in addition to the suit's own cards.
The card placed face-up after the deal that sets the trump suit.
The dealer turns this card up so all players can see it. If it's an Ace, the dealer robs immediately. Otherwise the turn-up sits on top of the talon for the duration of the hand and is announced as trump.