Pickleball Terms

There are a lot of pickleball terms, which can be confusing for both new and experienced players (or picklers as some people call them). Here is our list of common pickleball terms broken down into their different categories. If you are new to pickleball, be sure to read our blog How To Play Pickleball.

Types of Shots/Swings

ATP (Around the Post) A trick shot where a player plays a ball that is going out, hitting it so that it goes around the outside of the post, and lands in the service area

Backhand A shot made with your non-dominant hand where the back of your hand is facing the net

Backspin Using a high-low motion when you swing to make the ball spin in the opposite direction of its flight direction

Backswing When your paddle swings from the ready position before following through to the forward swing

Bert When you hit an erne in front of your partner on the other side of the court

Dink To hit the ball gently so that it arcs over the net and lands in the non-volley zone (aka Kitchen)

Drop Shot A groundstroke shot that lands short of your opponent’s position on the court

Drop Shot Volley A volley shot intended to kill the speed of the ball and have it land close to the net short of an opponent’s position

Drop Spin A very advanced shot where a slice shot has backspin shortly after crossing the net

Groundstroke When the ball is hit after one bounce

Half Volley A shot that is hit immediately after it bounces and before the ball rises to its potential height

Lob A high, deep shot intended to make it over the opponent’s reach forcing a difficult shot from the backline

Overhead Slam/Smash A hard overhand shot

Passing Shot A shot designed to prevent a return by aiming it far away from the opponent

Punch Shot A quick, short volley that has a short backswing and follow-through

Slice A shot that creates a backspin on the ball

Parts of the Court

Cross Court The service area of the court that is diagonally opposite of you

Non-Volley Zone (the Kitchen) The part of the court next to either side of the net. Players are not allowed to volley a ball while standing in the non-volley zone or its lines.

Service Court The area of the court that is on either side of the centerline but not in the non-volley zone

The Kitchen The non-volley zone of the court

Play Terms

Ace A serve that is not returned

Dead Ball The pickleball ball description after a fault - the point is over

Doubles A pickleball game played with 2 teams consisting of 2 players each

Banger A player who likes to hit the ball hard when making shots

Double Bounce When a ball bounces more than once on the same side of the court before being returned

Double Hit When one side hits the ball twice before returning it over the net

Erne When a player steps out of bounds to hit a ball in the non-volley zone so as to legally volley a ball before it hits the ground

Fault A rule violation that stops play

Let A serve that hits the net before going over - Nowadays this shot is still played, especially in tournaments

Pickled When a team loses a game without scoring any points

Poach When a player hits a shot on their teammate’s side of the court in a doubles game

Rally The continuous, back-and-forth play without a fault

Service Turn A player or team’s turn to serve

Side Out When the serve changes to the other team - the player on the right side serves first

Singles A pickleball game played with 2 players with 1 on each side of the net

Shadowing A strategy of moving in tandem with your doubles partner about 10 feet apart while remaining in sync

Stacking When the players of a doubles team start out on the same side of the court before the serve or return and then move to their spots after play has begun

Volley Returning the ball without it bouncing first

Funny Named Terms

Falafel A shot that often falls short of the net due to hitting it with not enough power

Flapjack A shot that cannot legally be hit because the ball did not bounce once on each side of the court

Golden Pickle What the winning team “earns” when they beat their opponent using only 1 server

Nasty Nelson When the server tries to hit their opponent who isn’t ready to receive the serve

Pickledome Court where a championship game is played

Volley Llama When a player hits a volley shot in the non-volley zone - This is an illegal shot