Attraction
Attraction draws or forces an enemy piece onto a specific unfavourable square.
CHESS KNOWLEDGE YOU CAN USE
Understand the idea. Find the better move.
30 essential chess terms, explained with examples, common mistakes and a practical training tip. From your first fork to a better endgame decision.
Tactics & checkmates
12 termsBack-rank mate
In a back-rank mate, a rook or queen checkmates a king on its home rank.
Deflection
Deflection forces or tempts an enemy piece to abandon an important defensive duty.
Discovered check
A discovered check occurs when one piece moves out of another friendly piece’s line, uncovering an attack on the enemy king.
Double attack
A double attack creates two threats at once.
Fork
A fork is a double attack: one piece attacks at least two enemy targets at once.
Overloading
A piece is overloaded when it has several defensive duties that it cannot continue to perform after a concrete threat.
Perpetual check
Perpetual check is a sequence of checks from which the opposing king cannot permanently escape.
Pin
A pin restricts a piece because moving it would expose a more important target behind it.
Skewer
A skewer is a line attack with the more valuable or urgently threatened target in front.
Smothered mate
Smothered mate is a knight checkmate in which the enemy king is trapped by its own pieces.
Zwischenzug
A zwischenzug, or intermediate move, inserts an urgent threat into an apparently forced sequence.
Strategy & opening play
8 termsCentre
The central squares are d4, e4, d5 and e5.
Development
Development brings pieces from their starting squares to useful positions and prepares their cooperation.
Initiative
The side with the initiative makes threats that shape play and force the opponent to respond.
Isolated pawn
An isolated pawn has no friendly pawn on either adjacent file, so it cannot be protected by another pawn.
King safety
King safety describes how well your king is protected from concrete attacks.
Pawn structure
Pawn structure is the arrangement of pawns.
Tempo
A tempo is a unit of time in chess, usually one move.
Weak squares
A weak square is difficult to defend, especially when it can no longer be attacked by a friendly pawn.
Endgames
6 termsKing activity
An active king participates in the endgame by attacking pawns, supporting passed pawns and controlling entry squares.
Opposition
In direct opposition, the kings face each other on the same rank or file with exactly one empty square between them.
Passed pawn
A passed pawn has no enemy pawn ahead of it on its own file or either adjacent file.
Rule of the square
The rule of the square estimates whether a king can catch an unsupported passed pawn without help from other pieces.
Stalemate
Stalemate occurs when the player to move has no legal move and their king is not in check.
Zugzwang
Zugzwang occurs when the obligation to move worsens your position: every legal move gives up something essential.
Game analysis
4 termsBlunder
A blunder is a serious mistake that substantially worsens a position’s prospects.
Candidate moves
Candidate moves are the few serious options you calculate before deciding.
Inaccuracy
An inaccuracy misses a stronger opportunity or slightly worsens the position without necessarily losing material immediately.
Position evaluation
A position evaluation estimates which side stands better and why.
Written for club players and improving beginners. The examples isolate one idea; always check the whole position in a real game. Official FIDE Laws of Chess ↗