Rummy Terms

Hand:  Each player is dealt 13 cards at the start of the game. These 13 cards are referred to as a player’s hand. The first 13 cards are the starting hand and the hand changes as the game progresses and the player picks and discards cards.

Joker:  It is decided before the deal. The joker is a wild card which can be used in place of any other card. If a joker is used for its face value, it is not seen as being used as a joker.   

The Closed Deck: This pile of cards is face down and consists of all the cards (26) except the 26 cards dealt out to the two players before the start of the game.

The Open Deck: This pile of cards is open (face up, though only the top card can be seen and used by both players) and consists of those cards which have been discarded by the players during their turns.

Sequence: A sequence is defined as a collection of three or more cards of consecutive numbers/values of the same suit. For instance A-2-3 , A-K-Q-J , J-10-9-8 and 2-3-4-5-6-7 are all sequences. A sequence can also be constructed with a joker, which is a card that can be used as any card. For example, if K is the joker, then 2-K-4-5 is a legitimate sequence if 2, 4 and 5 are of the same suit. Here K is used as the 3 of the same suit as 2, 4 and 5.

Pure Sequence: A sequence is defined as a collection of three or more cards of consecutive numbers/values of the same suit. For instance A-2-3 , A-K-Q-J , J-10-9-8 and 2-3-4-5-6-7 are all sequences. A sequence can also be constructed with a joker, which is a card that can be used as any card. For example, if K is the joker, then 2-K-4-5 is a legitimate sequence if 2, 4 and 5 are of the same suit. Here K is used as the 3 of the same suit as 2, 4 and 5.

Set: A set is a collection of a minimum of 3 cards and no more than 4 cards of the same face value. 3-3-3 and A-A-A-A are examples of sets. The joker can be used in a set as well. For instance, if K is the joker, then 3-K-3 is a legitimate set.