Curling is not light on the lingo. Few sports have as many unique words as this one. Toss them out liberally and people will think you really know what you’re doing. 

THE HAMMER: Since teams throw in an alternating fashion, one team throws the last rock in an end. That last rock advantage is called the HAMMER, and who has it an end affects strategy. The team with the hammer is hoping to use it to score multiple points in an end.

DRAW: Delivering a stone that stops in play rather than knocking out an opponent’s stone. 

TAKEOUT: Delivering a stone that removes your opponent’s stone from play. You could also say you’re playing a HIT. If you play a takeout and miss the opponent’s stone completely, that’s a 

FLASH. A flash isn’t good. 

STEAL: When a team scores in an end without having the hammer, it’s called a STEAL. So STEALING, at least for one team, is a good thing.

GUARD: A stone placed in front of another to protect.

BONSPIEL: That’s a curling tournament.

END: A portion of a curling game that has been completed when each team has thrown all their rocks. An end of curling is similar to an inning of baseball.

BLANK END: An end when no stones are left in the rings after the final rock is thrown. No points are awarded and the last rock is kept by the team that had it in the blank end.

HOUSE: The rings or circles that you aim your stones at. 

SHEET: The playing surface that a curling game takes place on.