This is a glossary of terms in curling.
During a game, sweepers might call out numbers. These numbers indicate how far the sweepers think the rock in play will travel. This system is relatively new to the game and is often attributed to the Randy Ferbey rink since they were the first major team to use the system, but it is not known whose idea it originally was. 1 to 3 indicates a rock in the free guard zone, 4 to 6 the rings in front of the tee line, 7 being on the button, and 8 to 10 the rings behind the tee line. Sometimes, 11 is used to indicate a stone thrown so that it passes through the house and out of play. With this system, the sweepers can communicate more effectively where they think the stone will end up or the skip can better tell the deliverer how hard to throw it.
# An endgame strategy based on maintaining hammer in the even ends of the last 3 ends of the game. If the team with hammer always scores (in other words, no blanks and no steals), then one team will have one more scoring opportunity than the other (hence "2 to 1"). The circle in the house. It surrounds the centre area called the button. It is used as a visual aid only – there is no extra score for placing a stone within it The circle in the house. It is used as a visual aid only – there is no extra score for placing a stone within it; generally not actually painted – it appears as the empty space between the 12-foot and 4-foot rings The circle outermost in the house; a stone completely outside this circle cannot score
A On a hit, refers to the shooter hitting the object stone on the opposite side from where the broom was placed. Since this imparts less speed to the object stone and takes less speed away from the shooter, it is a very efficient way of making a tick. This is seldom used for normal hits since it is harder to execute, unless necessary because a guard prevents using the other turn (also called a substitute, fifth, fifth man, or spare) is a curler on a team that only plays when another member of the team is not able to play. On occasion, they may be brought in late in a game where the result is not in doubt to gain experience. Outside of playing, an alternate may be expected to take on some coaching responsibilities. A very rare and extremely difficult shot in which a stone is delivered so that it will come to rest behind another stone already in play, created the same effect as if one stone had been frozen to the other Synonymous with gripper Temporary curling ice made quickly on a hockey rink or the like, most often used by curling clubs without dedicated curling facilities; usually of lower quality than that of a dedicated facility, but when created for televised events or events with large numbers of spectators, the ice quality can rival or even exceed that of a dedicated facility WCF term for when a team runs out of stones A double or triple where the shooter ends up coming back up the rings
B The portion of the 4 foot ring behind the tee line The portion of the 8 foot ring behind the tee line The portion of the 12 foot ring behind the tee line The border at the extreme ends of the sheet A team's third and skip, considered as a unit. Delivery speed required for a stone to come to rest in the back half of the house A stationary stone that can be used to stop the thrown stone from going any farther, thus allowing for a slightly heavy throw. Without backing, the shot will be harder since it requires perfect draw weight. The line right behind the house. If a rock completely crosses the back line, it is removed from play The portion of the house behind the tee line Synonymous with back 12 A board or other object behind the hack, used to stop moving stones; referred to as "bumper" in Canada Delivery speed that should come to rest against the barrier behind the hack. Synonymous with board weight. The traditional name for the device used to sweep ahead of a moving stone. A broom. When a stone barely touches the designated line marking on the ice, e.g. "bite centre", "bite the four", etc. A stone that barely touches the outside of the house, just biting the 12-foot ring A piece of equipment used to determine whether or not a stone is a biter An end in which no points are scored; in regular play the team that has the hammer retains it for the next end. In skins games, the skin for a blanked end is carried over. To "blank an end" means to intentionally leave no stones in the house so as to retain the hammer. Deliberately creating a blank end for the purposes of retaining the last rock advantage for the next end of play A shot delivered with heavy weight and high velocity. A blast is usually intended to remove many stones from play or is used to break up and move around clustered stones. "Playing the blast" into a large cluster of stones is often a last resort shot to get the rocks split up when there are no other viable shots available. Throwing a stone with enough speed that it will come to rest in an area just behind the hacks – about 6 feet behind the house. Synonymous with barrier/bumper weight. A way to break in the ice by which one drags harnessed rocks over the recently pebbled sheet in order to break the beaks of the water droplets on the ice. Bonspiel Scots for league match, this is the term used for a curling tournament. Compare "spiel" A failed corner freeze where the shooter rolls open Brier The Canadian men's curling championship, held annually since 1927 An implement with which players sweep the ice to make a stone travel farther and curl less; though brushes have almost completely replaced brooms, the traditional name remains. See stacking the brooms Broom / Sweeping A short raise The barrier Synonymous with barrier/board weight A rock that is hidden behind another rock, usually a guard, making it difficult for a curler to hit with a delivered rock. Also called "covered" To accidentally touch a moving stone; the opposing skip has the option to remove the burned stone, or leave it where it comes to rest The centre (bullseye) of the house; sometimes called the 1-foot circle
C When the skip determines and indicates the outcome desired for a shot and places the broom where they want the person delivering the stone to aim. When the skip is delivering, the vice-skip holds the broom where the skip has indicated A tournament with significant entry fees and large prizes, sometimes part of a charity event; despite the large prizes, cashspiels are not the premier events in curling A stone behind the tee line that may obstruct other stones from being removed Counter Clockwise (turn of the stone from delivery) A guard that is placed directly on the centre line, in front of the house; usually played by the team that does not have the hammer A line running lengthwise down the centre of the ice, used as a visual aid; some sheets do not have a centre line, or do not have one between the hog lines A takeout that hits a rock at an angle Chip and lie / chip and roll When a played stone strikes the edge of another stone and moves to another position in play Series of rocks in the house arrayed from front to back in such a way that a corner of each successive rock is visible from the hack, angling out like the edge of a Christmas tree. Grazing a stationary stone without significantly moving it; but enough to alter the path of the shooting rock A flashy but low-percentage shot. Also Trick shot To brush the ice lightly in front of a moving rock to remove any debris and ensure a correct line; less vigorous than a sweep The location of the curling rink; most players usually refer to it as "The Club" Any shot that curls around another rock Going into the final end A takeout shot that is slow enough that the sweepers have relative control over its curl; faster than board weight, but slower than normal takeout weight A type of guard that is off to the side of the house; usually employed when a team has the hammer and needs to score multiple points A stone in the house lying closer to the centre than any of the opponent's stones. Each counter scores one point at the completion of an end. Protection given to a rock by a rock in front of it Movement of a moving rock away from a straight line; as a verb, to play at curling General term for player involved in a curling team; also known as a "soofter" in the UK A team sport which involves sliding granite stones on ice and sweeping in front of them with brooms to direct them to desired placements Synonymous with club A participation souvenir, generally worn on a sweater; there is a sub-culture at any major bonspiel built around trading pins. Most curling clubs and many tournaments produce one, and they are usually not awards A device that permits a player to deliver a stone while standing upright; generally used by older players, these are legal in most games. A rock that has a tendency to finish more than other rocks. Clockwise (turn of the stone from delivery)
D A rock completely covered by another rock (often a guard) such that no part is visible Synonymous with no handle Process of throwing a stone Scoring 2 points in an end A call given by the skip for the sweepers to stop sweeping a rock; a rock that dies is a rock that stops moving State of a sheet of ice where the sides are slightly elevated compared to the center, so that a cross section of the ice would look like a cross section of a dish; this sometimes happens near the end of a week-long tournament because the pebbling motion tends to apply more pebbles to the side, while sweeping during games happens more often near the center and wears down the ice more in that region; when there is a dish, rocks will curl more towards the center and less away from the center Double takeout / Double A takeout shot in which two other stones are removed from play; a shot in which the delivered stone and one other stone are removed is not a double takeout Doubles curling A variation of curling played with 2 people per team and slightly altered rules. Most commonly seen as mixed doubles. When two rocks are frozen, hitting the top rock at an angle creates a drag effect that affects the direction of the second rock; the friction between the two frozen rocks makes the first rock "drag" the second rock slightly towards the same direction; hitting the top rock on the right makes the bottom rock move more to the left while hitting it on the left makes it move more to the right A shot that lands in play without hitting another stone out, as opposed to a takeout shot. Also refers to a game, e.g., “We have a draw at 7:00 p.m. tonight.” A shot in which the played stone pushes a stone straight forward into the house Person who assigns teams to different sheets, sets starting times, assigns players to teams in casual play, etc. Delivery speed required for a stone to come to rest in the house Dump the handle (also Flip or Turn-Out/Turn-In) During delivery of a stone, the thrower accidentally pushes the stone off-course with their turning motion; often the result of using the arm to shove the stone, and usually causes a missed shot
E Command – called out by the skip to tell the sweepers to ease off their sweeping of a rock but to continue sweeping it lightly and slowly. Eight-ender An end where all eight stones score for one team – a very rare occurrence. Similar to an inning in baseball; in an end, each team throws 8 rocks, 2 per player in alternating fashion; tournament style games usually run for 10 ends; games played at the club level usually run for 8 ends. Prior to the latter half of the twentieth century, a game consisted of 12 ends played in full. Equivalent to an extra inning in baseball; in the event of a tie after the prescribed number of ends, extra ends are played until the tie is broken.