gutter ball a ball that rolls into the gutter.
gutter shot a delivery down along a gutter that hooks or veers out as it reaches the pins.
half Worcester a 3-9 or 2-8 split.
handicap points added to the score of a player or team to make competition even.
hang a pin to miss knocking down a strike by one pin.
headpin the front or number 1 pin. May be called the kingpin in some usage.
high board a high or raised board in a lane that alters a ball's trajectory.
high hit a ball that hits the headpin straight-on. high-low-jack a 1-7-10 split.
holding lane a lane that diminishes a ball's hooking action. Also known as a fast lane or stiff alley.
hole a strike pocket.
hook a ball thrown with rotation that veers into a strike pocket.
inning a frame.
Jersey see Brooklyn.
kegler a bowler.
kegling another name for bowling.
kickbacks the side boards running parallel to the pit.
kingpin the central pin; the number 5 pin. In some usage the headpin may be called the kingpin.
lane the 60-foot alley between the foul line and the pit.
laying out the ball delivering the ball smoothly onto the lane without bounces.
leave the pins left standing after delivering the first ball in a frame.
lift snapping the fingers up when releasing to impart rotation on the ball.
line a 10-frame game.
loft a poor delivery in which the ball flies up out of the hand and bounces harshly onto the lane.
mark a spare or a strike.
mixer a well-thrown ball that produces a violent tumbling action among the pins. Also known as a sweeper.
mother-in-law the 7 pin.
move in to start the approach in a center position.
move out to start the approach from a corner position.
mule ears the 7-10 split; bedposts.
nosedive a ball that hits the headpin straight-on.
one in the dark see barmaid.
open frame a frame without a spare or a strike. PBA Professional Bowlers Association. picket fence a 1-2-4-7 or 1-3-6-10 leave. pie alley see cheesecake. pin deck see deck.
pinfall the pins that are knocked down by a ball, or all the pins knocked over in a single frame.
pinsetter the apparatus that sets the pins and resets the pins on the deck.
pit the sunken area below the end of a lane, where balls and knocked-down pins are collected.
pocket the area most likely to yield a strike when hit with the balls; for right-handers, this is between the 1 and 3 pins; for lefties, the 1 and 2; the strike pocket.
power player a player who relies more on powerful deliveries to knock down pins than on finesse.
pumpkin a weakly thrown ball with little or no hooking action.
rack a setup of 10 pins.
railroad a split.
read the lane to roll practice balls in order to determine a lane's quirks or imperfections.
ringing 8 the 8 pin left standing alone.
rob the cradle to knock down only one pin in a baby split.
roundhouse a wide curving trajectory.
running lane a lane in which hooks can easily be made into the pocket. Also known as a slow lane.
scratch a player's score without any handicap added in. Also, a nonhandicap game.
setup a rack.
short pin a pin that is knocked down but that fails to knock down any of its neighbors.
skittles a British bowling game in which a wooden ball or disk is used to knock down nine pins.
sleeper any pin hidden behind another pin; a barmaid.
slow lane see running lane. sour apple the 5-7 split.
spare 10 pins knocked down with two balls in a single frame.
split any combination of pins left standing with a gap or gaps between them.
spread eagle a split leaving the 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 10 pins.
strike 10 pins knocked down on the first ball rolled. To make a strike is known as to carry a rack.
strike out to roll three strikes in a row in the last frame of a game.
strike pocket pocket.
string one game; 10 frames.
sweep bar the bar apparatus that collects fallen pins from the deck.
sweeper see mixer.
tenpins the modern game of bowling, characterized by its large balls with drilled holes and its wide-bottomed pins, as distinguished from candlepins.
300 game a game with 12 consecutive strikes for a score of 300.
wood the pins.
Woolworth a split leaving the 5-10.
worcester a split leaving everything but the 1 and 5.
boxing
apron the perimeter of the ring floor extending outside the ropes.
arm puncher a boxer who does not put the weight of his body behind his punches.
babyweight the weight division below lightweight. bagged fight a fixed fight.
bantamweight the weight division with a 118- pound limit.
below the belt received below the belt; it is an illegal punch that results in loss of points.
bob and weave to move the head and upper body up and down and back and forth to elude punches.
bolo punch an exaggerated form of the uppercut, having a swing that begins below the hop.
bout a match.
breadbasket slang for the abdomen.
break to pull away from a clinch.
butt to butt the opponent with the top of the head; a foul if intentional.
canvas the floor of the ring.
cauliflower ear a swollen, deformed ear resembling cauliflower, caused by repeated blows.
clinch to hold or embrace the opponent either from exhaustion or to avoid being hit.
cold cock to knock someone out with one punch.
combination a quick succession of varied punches.
cornerman the assistant or trainer who comes into the ring at the end of a round to advise his fighter. See cut man.
crazy bag a small, leather punching bag strung with elastic cords from floor to ceiling, used to develop timing. Also known as double-end bag.
cross a punch thrown across the opponent's punch.
cruiserweight weight division with a 190-pound limit; found in the WBC only
cut man a cornerman responsible for stopping the flow of blood from a fighter's cuts.
dance to use footwork to elude an opponent.
decision a win awarded on the basis of points, as distinguished from a knockout.
double up to throw two punches in quick succession. draw a bout that ends in a tie.
drop one's guard to momentarily drop one's guard hand, leaving the jaw open and vulnerable to a punch.