Guides · Darts terms · 13 min read
Darts terms from A to Z
Darts terms are the words players, callers and commentators use for the board, the dart, the scores and the rules. This darts glossary explains each one in a sentence or two, from arrows to X01.
In short
- A ton is 100 in one visit, and 180 is the maximum.
- A checkout ends a leg, usually with the last dart in a double.
- A bust goes too far, and the whole visit scores nothing.
- The oche is the throw line, 2.37 m from the board.
Board and dart
What are the parts of a dartboard and a dart called?
A dartboard has 20 numbered segments, each split into single, treble and double beds, around a bull worth 25 and a bullseye worth 50. A dart has four parts: point, barrel, shaft and flight.
- Number ringShows the value of each segment. It scores nothing.
- DoubleThe thin outer ring. Counts twice.
- TrebleThe thin inner ring. Counts three times.
- BedOne number in one ring, here the treble 6.
- WireThe metal dividers. Together they form the spider.
- IslandThe scoring area inside the double ring.
- Outer bullThe ring around the centre, worth 25.
- BullseyeThe centre, worth 50. Counts as a double.
- 2.37 moche to board face
- 1.73 mfloor to bullseye
- 50 gheaviest legal dart
A to B
The board, the dart and the first scores
Most words here name something you can point at, from the barrel in your hand to the bull in the middle. New to the game? The darts for beginners guide puts them in order.
- ArrowsSlang for darts. “Pick up your arrows” means it is your turn.
- Around the ClockHit 1 to 20 in order, often finishing on the bull. Also called round the world, see Around the Clock.
- AveragePoints per visit: points scored divided by darts thrown, times three. More in the darts average guide.
- Bag of nuts45 in one visit, for example 20, 20 and 5.
- BarrelThe metal body you grip, usually tungsten or brass. Under WDF rules a whole dart may weigh at most 50 g and be at most 30.5 cm long, see how to choose darts.
- BedOne number in one ring, such as the treble 20 bed.
- Bed and breakfast26 in one visit: 20, 5 and 1, as the darts drift either side of the 20.
- Big fishThe 170 checkout of treble 20, treble 20, bullseye, the highest under double out.
- Bob’s 27Bob Anderson’s doubles drill: start on 27, throw three darts at each double from 1 to 20 and the bull, add hits and lose the double’s value when all three miss. At zero you are out, see Bob’s 27.
- Bogey numberA score below 171 with no three-dart finish under double out: 159, 162, 163, 165, 166, 168 and 169.
- Bounce-outA dart that hits a wire or another dart and falls out. It scores nothing and may not be thrown again.
- Break of throwWinning a leg in which your opponent threw first.
- BullThe ring around the centre, worth 25, also called the outer bull or single bull. In everyday talk “bull” can mean the bullseye too.
- Bull-offEach player throws one dart at the bullseye, and the one closest to the centre starts.
- BullseyeThe centre, worth 50, also called the inner bull or double bull. It counts as a double, so it can finish a leg.
- BustA visit that goes below zero, or under double out leaves 1 or ends on zero without a double. The whole visit scores nothing.
C to D
Checkouts, Cricket and doubles
In X01 the last dart has to hit a double, so many of these terms are about finishing.
- CallerThe official who announces each score and what is left. Sridu’s caller does the same job at your own board.
- ChalkerThe person who keeps score at the board, named after the pub chalkboard. Also called the marker.
- CheckoutFinishing a leg on exactly zero, with a double under double out. It also means the score, as in “a 100 checkout”, see the checkout chart.
- Checkout rateDoubles hit divided by darts thrown at a finishing double. Three hits from ten darts is 30%.
- CorkAn old name for the bull. To “cork” for the start means to throw a bull-off. How the bull-off works is in the darts rules.
- CricketA game on 15 to 20 and the bull. Three marks close a number, and you score on numbers you have closed and your opponent has not, see Cricket.
- DartitisA problem with letting go of the dart cleanly, the darts version of the yips. See dartitis: what it is and what helps.
- Dominant eyeThe eye your brain trusts more when you aim, and many players line the dart up under it. See dominant eye in darts.
- DoubleThe thin outer ring. A dart there scores twice the number, so double 20 is 40.
- Double inA rule under which your score only starts to count once you hit a double. Often played as 301 double in, double out.
- Double outThe standard X01 rule: the last dart of a leg must land in a double or the bullseye.
- Double topDouble 20, worth 40, at the top of the board. Also called “tops”.
- DownstairsSwitching from the 20 to the 19 at the bottom of the board when your own darts block the treble 20. Some players score on the 19 from the start, see T20 or T19.
E to K
Match talk, technique and party games
The words you hear around a match, a few terms from coaching, and two games every pub knows.
- First nineYour average over the first nine darts of each leg, before any finish. Sridu’s statistics show it next to the full average.
- First toThe length of a match. “First to 3 legs” is the same as “best of 5”.
- FlightThe wing at the back of the dart that keeps it stable in the air.
- Follow-throughThe arm movement after the dart leaves your hand. Letting the arm carry on towards the target makes the release more repeatable, see follow-through.
- Foul throwA dart that is not thrown deliberately, by hand and point first. Under WDF rules it does not count.
- Game onThe caller’s call at the start of each leg.
- Game shotThe caller’s call when a leg has been won, for example “Game shot, and the first leg”.
- GripHow you hold the dart, usually with three or four fingers. The darts grip guide compares the common ones.
- GroupingHow close together the three darts of a visit land.
- Halve-ItA game with one target per round. Miss it with all three darts and your score is halved, see Halve-It.
- HockeyAnother name for the oche, the line you throw from.
- Hold of throwWinning a leg in which you threw first. The opposite of a break.
- IslandThe scoring area of the board, inside the double ring. A dart “off the island” missed it altogether.
- KillerEverybody gets a number. Hit your own double to become a killer, then take lives by hitting the others’ doubles, see Killer.
L to M
Legs, marks and the maximum
Legs make up sets, and sets make up a match. Mark and MPR belong to Cricket.
- LeaveThe score left after a visit. A good leave halves cleanly, such as 32: a single 16 leaves 16, and you are still on a double.
- LegOne game of X01, from the starting score down to zero.
- MadhouseDouble 1, worth 2. Being “in the madhouse” means you need double 1 to finish.
- MarkIn Cricket, one hit on a number: a single is one mark, a double two, a treble three. The outer bull is one mark and the bullseye two.
- Master outA finishing rule under which the last dart may land in a double, a treble or the bullseye.
- Match dartA dart thrown at a double that would win the match.
- Maximum180, the highest score with three darts: three treble 20s. Also called a ton-80.
- MPRMarks per round, the Cricket average: marks divided by visits. An MPR of 2 is solid club level, 3 or more is strong.
- Mugs awayThe pub rule that the loser of the previous leg throws first in the next one.
N to S
From the nine-darter to steel-tip
From the rarest leg in darts to the stance at the oche. The classic nine-darter takes three visits:
- 180T20, T20, T20
- 180T20, T20, T20
- 141T20, T19, D12
- Nine-darterWinning a leg of 501 with nine darts, the fewest possible. The classic route is 180, 180 and 141; the nine-dart finish guide lists every other one.
- OcheThe throw line, pronounced “ockey”. Under WDF and PDC rules it is 2.37 m from the board face, measured along the floor, see how to hang a dartboard.
- PointThe tip of the dart.
- Robin HoodA dart that sticks in the back of another dart already in the board, in its shaft or flight.
- SetA block of legs, usually won by the first player to take three.
- ShaftThe part between barrel and flight, made of nylon, aluminium or carbon, in several lengths. Also called the stem.
- ShanghaiA single, double and treble of one number in one visit, which wins the game Shanghai outright. 20, treble 20, double 20 is the 120 Shanghai finish.
- SingleThe large areas between the rings. A single scores the number itself.
- Single outA rule under which any segment can finish a leg. Also called straight out.
- SisalThe pressed fibre of a steel-tip board, which closes up after a dart comes out. Rotating the board spreads the wear, see dartboard care.
- Soft-tipDarts with plastic points, thrown at an electronic board that scores by itself. The differences are in steel-tip vs soft-tip.
- SpiderThe wire web that divides the board into beds. Thin, staple-free spiders cause fewer bounce-outs, see the dartboard buying guide.
- StanceHow you stand at the oche, usually side-on or at an angle, with the foot on your throwing side in front.
- Steel-tipDarts with metal points for a sisal (bristle) board, as played by the WDF and PDC. Webcams can score it for you, see automatic darts scoring.
T to Z
Tons, trebles and the wire
The big scores, and the wire that gets in their way. Every visit of 100 or more counts as a ton in the statistics.
- 100Ton
- 140Ton-forty
- 171Three in a bed
- 180Ton-80
- Three in a bedAll three darts of a visit in the same bed, for example three in the treble 19 for 171. Some players use it for any three darts in the same number.
- TonA score of 100 in one visit. 140 is a “ton-forty”.
- Ton-80180, the maximum. Also written ton-eighty.
- TrebleThe thin inner ring, worth three times the number, so treble 20 is 60, the best one dart can do. Also called a triple.
- VisitOne turn at the board, up to three darts. A visit ends early with a checkout or a bust.
- WhitewashWinning a match without losing a single leg, or a single set in set play.
- WireThe metal divider between beds, part of the spider. A dart that lands just on the wrong side of it has been “wired”.
- X01The family of countdown games, such as 301 and 501, where you count down to exactly zero. See X01.
Scores with names
Which darts scores have their own names?
Scores that come up often have nicknames, most of them darts slang from British pubs. These are the ones you will hear.
- 40, double topThe double 20, also just “tops”.
- 45, bag of nutsUsually 20, 20 and 5.
- 100 and 140, ton and ton-fortyTreble 20 and two 20s, or two trebles and a 20.
- 120, Shanghai finish20, treble 20, double 20 to win the leg.
- 170, big fishTreble 20, treble 20, bullseye. The highest checkout.
- 180, maximumThree treble 20s, also a ton-80. Nine perfect darts win a leg of 501.
No name, no finish. The bogey numbers 159, 162, 163, 165, 166, 168 and 169 have no three-dart checkout under double out, so good players avoid leaving them. The checkout chart has a route for every score that can be finished.
Caller calls
What does the caller say during a darts match?
The caller announces the score of every visit and what a player needs to finish. The calls follow the same pattern in every leg.
- “Game on”Called at the start of each leg.
- “One hundred and eighty!”After each visit the caller says the total, and the big ones get stretched out.
- “No score”A visit of zero, and also a bust.
- “You require 40”Once a finish is possible in one visit, the caller says what is left before the player throws.
- “Game shot”The leg is won, followed by what it decided: “and the first leg”, “and the set” or “and the match”.
No caller at home? Sridu’s caller makes these calls for you, including “No score” after a bust and “you require” once a finish is on.
Same meaning
Which darts terms mean the same thing?
Pub slang, American English and the official rules each have their own words, so this darts terminology is full of double names. These pairs cause the most confusion.
| Term | Also called |
|---|---|
| Oche | Throw line, hockey |
| Visit | Throw, turn |
| Treble | Triple |
| Bull (25) | Outer bull, single bull |
| Bullseye (50) | Inner bull, double bull |
| Checkout | Finish, out-shot |
| Shaft | Stem |
| Chalker | Marker, scorer |
| 180 | Maximum, ton-80 |
| Double 20 | Double top, tops |
| Single out | Straight out |
| Around the Clock | Round the world |
Sources: WDF Playing and Tournament Rules, 20th edition (dart size, oche, board height, bust, caller and marker).
FAQ
Questions about darts slang
What does oche mean in darts?
The oche is the line a player stands behind to throw. It is pronounced “ockey”. Under WDF and PDC rules it is 2.37 m from the face of the board, measured along the floor, and the bullseye hangs 1.73 m above the floor.
What is a ton in darts?
A ton is a score of 100 in one visit of three darts. 140 is called a ton-forty and 180 a ton-80, the maximum.
What does bust mean in darts?
A bust is a visit in X01 that takes the score below zero. Under double out it is also a bust to leave exactly 1 or to reach zero without a double. The visit scores nothing, the score goes back to what it was before it, and the caller calls “No score”.
What is the difference between a bull and a bullseye?
The bull, or outer bull, is the green ring around the centre and scores 25. The bullseye, or inner bull, is the red centre and scores 50. Only the bullseye counts as a double, so only it can finish a leg under double out.
What is the difference between a leg and a set?
A leg is one game from the starting score, usually 501, down to zero. A set is a group of legs, usually won by the first player to take three.
What are bogey numbers in darts?
Bogey numbers are scores that cannot be checked out with three darts under double out. There are seven of them below 171: 159, 162, 163, 165, 166, 168 and 169. No score above 170 can be finished in one visit.
Guides
Related guides
Hear the darts terms at your own board
Start a game of 501 in Sridu and the caller announces every ton, every 180 and every game shot, while webcams at the board score each dart for you. It runs free in the browser, with no account. To learn the finishes next, try the checkout chart.