Pickleball Terms and Abbreviations: A Quick Primer
5 min readUpdated ArcStat Pickleball Guides
Quick answer
Pickleball has its own vocabulary: dink, drop, ATP, Erne, poach, and stacking are terms every player encounters early. This primer covers the most common ones.
Pickleball has developed a rich vocabulary in a short time. Terms from tennis, ping-pong, and badminton mix with sport-specific words. Whether you are reading match commentary, following a drill video, or listening to your doubles partner call a play, knowing these terms helps you understand the game faster.
Core Shot Terms
Term
What It Means
Dink
A soft shot played from near the kitchen that arcs over the net and lands in the opponent's NVZ, forcing a bounce and preventing an aggressive volley.
Third-shot drop
A soft, arcing shot from the serving team after the two-bounce rule is satisfied. Designed to land in the kitchen and neutralize the net advantage of the returning team.
Drive
A flat, hard groundstroke aimed at forcing a weak return or winning the point outright.
Lob
A high, deep shot intended to go over the opponents' heads and land near the baseline.
Overhead (smash)
An aggressive downward shot hit above the head, usually in response to a lob.
Reset
A soft, controlled shot played when under pressure, intended to neutralize an attack and restart a neutral dinking rally.
Speedup
An aggressive fast shot inserted into a dinking exchange to catch the opponent off guard at close range.
Common pickleball shot terms
Advanced Shot Terms
As you progress, you will hear more specific shot names that describe unusual angles, footwork, and positioning.
Term
What It Means
ATP (Around the Post)
A shot played around the outside of the net post, not over it. Legal when the ball has traveled wide of the post. One of the most spectacular shots in pickleball.
Erne
A volley hit by jumping or running to the side of the court and volleying from outside the kitchen sideline. Legal as long as both feet are outside the NVZ at contact. Named after Erne Perry.
Bert
Like an Erne, but executed by crossing in front of your partner to poach a ball on their side of the court.
Chainsaw serve (banned)
A technique where the server used the paddle to spin the ball before releasing it for the serve, generating extreme spin. Banned by USA Pickleball in 2023.
Malachy (or roll volley)
A topspin roll volley used at close range to accelerate the ball downward at the opponent's feet.
Advanced and specialty shot terms
Positioning and Tactics Terms
Term
What It Means
Stacking
A doubles positioning strategy where both partners line up on the same side of the court after the serve or return, then shift to their preferred sides before the ball arrives. Used to keep a lefty on the left and a righty on the right regardless of server rotation.
Poach
When one doubles partner crosses to the other side to intercept a shot intended for their partner.
Kitchen line (NVZ line)
The line marking the edge of the non-volley zone. Being at this line is the dominant net position in doubles.
Transition zone
The area between the baseline and the kitchen line where players are most vulnerable. Moving through it quickly to reach the NVZ line is a key skill.
Bangers
Informal term for players who prefer driving hard at opponents rather than playing the soft dinking game. Effective against weaker dinks; vulnerable to consistent resetting.
Doubles positioning and tactics vocabulary
Abbreviations and Scoring Shorthand
Abbreviation
Meaning
NVZ
Non-volley zone (the kitchen)
ATP
Around the post
MLP
Major League Pickleball (professional team league)
APP
Association of Pickleball Players (professional tour)
PPA
Professional Pickleball Association (professional tour)
When playing in organized leagues you will also encounter format terms: round robin (everyone plays everyone), elimination bracket (lose and you are out), dual meet (two clubs compete across multiple courts at once), and ladder league (players challenge those just above them in a ranked list). ArcStat supports all of these formats for pickleball leagues.
Frequently asked
What is a dink and why is it important?
A dink is a soft, controlled shot that lands in the opponent's non-volley zone. Because it must bounce, the opponent cannot volley aggressively from close range. Consistent dinking forces errors, creates openings, and is the foundation of high-level doubles play.
What does stacking mean in doubles?
Stacking is when both partners line up on the same side of the court before the serve or return is hit, then shift to their preferred sides. It keeps each player on their dominant side regardless of the serve rotation, which is especially valuable when one player is left-handed.
Is an ATP (around the post) shot legal?
Yes. A ball that has traveled wide of the post may be returned around the outside of the post, not over the net. The shot must land in bounds. There is no height restriction because the ball is not going over the net.
What is the third-shot drop and why does everyone talk about it?
The third shot of a rally (the serving team's first groundstroke after the two-bounce sequence) is the most critical shot in pickleball. A well-executed drop shot from the baseline arcs softly into the opponent's kitchen, forcing them to hit upward and allowing the serving team to advance to the NVZ line safely.