Gambling terms, explained straight

In poker, turn refers to a specific board card, not a player's turn to act.

Poker

Turn in poker (fourth street card)

The turn is the fourth community card dealt face up in community-card poker games, after the flop and before the river.

Also called
Turn card; fourth street12
Position in deal
Fourth of five community cards, after the flop and before the river12
Applies to
Texas hold 'em and other community-card poker games12

Key points

  • After the flop betting round ends, one card is dealt face up to the board as the turn.23
  • Players combine the turn with their hole cards and other community cards to make the best five-card hand.23

Common questions

Can you fold out of turn in poker?

Yes, but it is against proper poker etiquette and may be penalised. Folding out of turn gives other players information they should not have, affecting the fairness of the hand.

Where this term is used

Sources

  1. Glossary of poker terms en.wikipedia.org Defines the turn as the fourth community card and lists its alternative names.
  2. Texas hold 'em en.wikipedia.org Explains the turn's position in Texas hold 'em and how it is dealt after the flop.
  3. Community card poker en.wikipedia.org Covers the turn in the context of community-card poker games.

Sources are drawn from regulators, universities and published research, and each one is labelled with what it actually is — a preprint is not called a paper. Bookmaker and affiliate pages are never cited here, because a page that sells betting is not a neutral authority on it.