Curling uses many terms unique to the game - we hope you find this list useful!

Back Board: Border at extreme ends of the sheet

Back Line: Crosswise line at back edge of the house - stone is out of play if it completely crosses this line

Back Ring: Diameter of 12-foot circle behind the tee line

Biter: Stone just touching the outside circle

Bite Stick: Equipment used to determine whether or not a stone is a biter

Bonspiel: A tournament in which a number of teams play in several events for prizes

Broomstacking: Socializing with other curlers after a game

Burned Stone: Contact is made with a moving stone by a person or equipment

Button: The 1-foot circle at the very center of the house

Cash Spiel: Tournament played by competitive teams, usually as a preparation for playdowns

Centerline: Line running lengthwise down the center of the sheet

Chip & Lie: When a played stone strikes the edge of another stone and moves to another position in play

Counter: Any stone lying closer to the center than any of the opponent's stones

Curl: Lateral swing on stone during its travel down the ice

Draw Weight: Enough weight (or momentum) for a stone to stop in the house

End: When all stones have been played from one end of the sheet to the other - there are usually 8-10 ends in a game

Free Guard Zone: Area in front of the house, between the hog line and tee line, where a rock cannot be removed from play by the opposing lead (Canadian rules vary slightly)

Freeze: When a stone has just enough momentum to stop just as it touches another stone

Front Ring: Diameter of 12-foot circle in front of the tee line

Fun Spiel: Bonspiel oriented to recreational/fun play, often shorter duration games, and may have unusual formats

Guard: A stone lying in front of another stone

Hack: An immovable brace for the foot in or on the ice at point of delivery

Hammer: Last rock to be delivered in an end

Hog: When a played stone fails to clear the far hog line - it is removed from play

Hog Line: Crosswise line 21 feet from the tee line

House: Scoring area, designated by rings - 12 feet in diameter

In-Turn: Stone rotating clockwise as it travels - it will curl towards the right

Keen Ice: When less effort is needed to deliver a rock a given distance

Lead: Player who delivers the first pair of stones for a team

Measure Stick: Equipment used to determine which of two or more stones is closest to the center when they are too similar to know with visual inspection

Narrow: Stone delivered "off the broom" - between the skips broom and objective

Northern Mixed: An event format where teams must have at least one person of the opposite sex on the team

Off-The-Broom: Stone not delivered on line to the skips broom

On-The Broom: Stone delivered directly at the skips broom

Out-Turn: Stone rotating counter-clockwise as it travels - it will curl towards the left

Pebble: Surface formed by sprinkling the ice with a mist-spray of water

Playdowns: Competitive play towards club, state, national, and world championships

Port: Opening between two stones sufficient to allow another stone to pass through

Raise: Hitting a stone, causing it to be advanced while remaining in play

Rink: (a) Group of players makeing up a team, or (b) a curling facility

Rock: Another term for 'stone'

Roll: Any movement of a stone after striking another

Second: Player delivering the second pair of stones for a team

Second Shot: Stone that is second nearest the center

Sheet: Ice area on which a curling game is played (146' long by 14'-15' wide)

Shot Rock: Stone that is lying closest to the center of the house

Skip: Captain of the team, often delivers the fourth pair of stones for a team

Slide: Forward movement of player during delivery of a stone

Spinner: Stone traveling with a rapid rotation

Steal: When the team without the last rock (hammer) scores in an end

Stone: A 42-pound, precisely shaped piece of granite with a handle attached (8 stones per team are used in a game)

Straight Handle: (also Dead Handle) Stone traveling without rotation

Sweep: To use a brush or broom in front of a moving stone to clean the path and/or to apply pressure to the ice in front of a moving stone to help it travel further and/or curl more or less

Swingy Ice: When curl or arc of traveing stone is greater than usual

Take-Out: Striking another stone hard enough to remove it from play

Tee Line: Crosswise line at center of house

Third: (also Vice-Skip) Player that delivers third pair of stones for a team and holds the broom and calls line while the Skip delivers his/her stones, the Third also determines the score in each end in conjunction with the opposing Third

True Mixed: An event format where the teams must have two men and two women, played in alternating positions

Weight: Speed of the traveling stone - determines how far the stone will travel before stopping, also affects how much a stone will curl in a given distance

Wick: (also Chip) When a stone strikes the edge of another stone

Wide: Stone delvered 'off the broom' - on the side away from objective

Wobbler: Stone that rocks from side to side as it travels because it is not resting on its running surface