This glossary explains the card game words used in Solitaire and in this guide, in plain words. The words in bold are the ones you see on screen.
Cards
Word
What it means
Suit
The four kinds of card: hearts ♥, diamonds ♦, clubs ♣ and spades ♠. Hearts and diamonds are red; clubs and spades are black
Rank
The number or letter on a card. From low to high: ace, 2 to 10, jack, queen, king
Ace
The lowest card, worth 1. It always starts a top pile
Jack, queen, king
The picture cards, worth 11, 12 and 13 in Pyramid
Deck
A full set of 52 cards: 13 of each suit. Spider uses two decks, 104 cards
Face up / face down
A face-up card shows its number and suit. A face-down card shows its back
Card back
The picture on the back of the cards. You open new ones by winning
The table
Word
What it means
Deal
One game, with the cards shuffled and laid out. New deal gives new cards; Restart this deal gives the same cards again
Pile
A row of cards on the table, overlapping so you can see them. Klondike has 7, FreeCell 8 and Spider 10
Top pile
One of the four piles where a suit goes up from ace to king. Other card games call it a foundation
Draw pile
The face-down cards you turn over with a tap. In Spider, a tap deals a new row instead
Turned cards
The cards you turned from the draw pile. Only the top one can be played
Free spot
In FreeCell, one of four places that each hold a single card for a while
Free card
In Pyramid, a card that no other card rests on. Only free cards can make a pair
Empty pile
A pile with no cards left. In Klondike only a king can go there; in FreeCell and Spider any card can
Table cloth
The colour of the table under the cards. You open new ones by winning
Moves
Word
What it means
Run
Cards in order, each one lower than the one under it, like 9, 8, 7. In Klondike and FreeCell the colours take turns; in Spider a run moves only if it is one suit
One higher / other colour
The main rule of Klondike and FreeCell: a red 9 goes on a black 10
Pair
In Pyramid, two free cards that make 13 together, like 6 + 7
Send up
Move a card to its top pile, with U, Y, or a double tap when One tap moves a card is off
Turn the pile over
When the draw pile is empty, a tap puts the turned cards back as a new draw pile
Deal a row
In Spider, a tap on the draw pile that puts one new card on all ten piles
Finished suit
In Spider, a whole suit from king to ace, which flies off the table
Move
Anything you do: moving cards, turning a card or taking a pair. Moves counts them
Best
Your fewest moves for a win in that game
Choices and helpers
Word
What it means
Turn 1 / Turn 3
In Klondike, how many cards a tap on the draw pile turns
1 suit / 2 suits / 4 suits
In Spider, how many suits are mixed in the two decks
Hint
A button that shows a good next move with a gold glow
Undo
A button that takes back your last move, as often as you like
Finish
A button in Klondike and FreeCell that sends the last cards up
No move left
A bar that shows when you are stuck, with Undo, Restart this deal and New deal
Winnable deal
A deal that a computer player has already won, so you know a win is possible
Daily deal
One Klondike deal for everyone, new each day
Goal
A small job on a Klondike deal, like "Make one pile empty."
Save slot
One of three places that each keep one player's game
