New to Pokémon Card Collecting? Here’s our handy glossary to help you learn common terminology!
1. Ability
A special effect or power on some Pokémon cards that provides an ongoing benefit or condition during gameplay.
2. Alternate Art
A version of a card with different artwork than the regular print, often more detailed or stylized.
3. Ancient Trait
Special traits featured on some cards in older sets, providing additional effects or powers during gameplay.
4. Art Box
The area on a card where the Pokémon’s illustration is located.
5. Base Set
The first set of Pokémon cards ever released, with cards like Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur being iconic.
6. Beckett Grading Services (BGS)
A professional grading service that evaluates Pokémon cards, offering detailed sub-grades.
7. Binder
A storage tool used by collectors to keep cards in protective plastic pages.
8. Black Star Promo
Promo cards marked with a black star symbol, typically released through events, magazines, or special products.
9. Booster Box
A sealed box containing multiple booster packs, often used for larger card openings or investments.
10. Booster Pack
A sealed package of Pokémon cards, typically containing 10-15 cards.
11. Box Break
An event where someone opens sealed products on video or live stream, often selling slots to participants.
12. Card Number
The number printed on a card to indicate its position within a set (e.g., 23/99).
13. Centering
Refers to how evenly the card image is positioned within its borders. Key in determining card grade.
14. Chase Card
A highly sought-after or valuable card in a set, usually a Secret Rare, Full Art, or other rare variant.
15. Checklane Blister
A package containing a single booster pack and an additional promo card or coin, usually sold at retail checkouts.
16. Collection Box
A sealed product containing a selection of booster packs, promo cards, and possibly other items like coins or pins.
17. Common
A card rarity classification indicating it is easily found in packs, marked by a black circle.
18. Complete Set
A full collection of all cards in a particular set.
19. Condition
The physical state of a card, ranging from “Mint” to “Poor,” determining its value to collectors.
20. Crimping
The pattern left on the edge of a card from where it was sealed in the booster pack. Some misaligned crimping can lead to rare misprints.
21. Deck
A set of 60 cards used in official Pokémon TCG gameplay.
22. Deck Box
A container for storing and organizing a player’s 60-card deck.
23. Double Crisis
A special mini-set released in 2015 featuring cards tied to the storyline of Team Magma and Team Aqua.
24. Dual Type
Cards that feature Pokémon with two types, providing more gameplay versatility.
25. Energy Card
A card that provides the energy needed to attack with a Pokémon in the TCG.
26. Error Card
A card with a printing mistake, such as wrong text, artwork, or missing elements, often highly collectible.
27. EX Card
Powerful cards featuring evolved Pokémon, which were introduced in the EX series.
28. Expansion
A term referring to a set of Pokémon cards, such as “Sword & Shield,” released in blocks.
29. FA (Full Art)
Cards with artwork that covers the entire card surface, typically found as Ultra Rare or higher.
30. Factory Sealed
A product that has never been opened, retaining its original packaging from the factory.
31. First Edition
Cards from the first print run of a set, marked with a “1st Edition” stamp.
32. Flareon
A specific Pokémon that is often collectible for fans, especially cards from the early sets.
33. Flip
To quickly buy and resell cards or products for a profit.
34. Foil
Refers to cards with a shiny, metallic surface, commonly seen on holo and reverse holo cards.
35. Full Art Trainer
Trainer cards with full artwork covering the card, typically featuring human characters from the games.
36. Gem Mint
A card graded at the highest level, usually a 10 by PSA or Beckett, indicating flawless condition.
37. Grading
The process of assessing a card’s condition for resale or investment purposes, performed by companies like PSA, Beckett, or CGC.
38. GX Card
A powerful type of Pokémon card introduced during the Sun & Moon series, featuring strong attacks.
39. Holo / Holographic
A card with a shiny, reflective surface on the image or part of the card.
40. Holobleed
A misprint where the holographic effect “bleeds” out of the artwork box onto the rest of the card.
41. Jumbo Card
Oversized promotional cards, often included with collection boxes, usually not used in gameplay.
42. Legendary Pokémon
Rare and often powerful Pokémon characters that have special status in the lore, making their cards highly collectible.
43. Limited Edition
A card or product that has been released in limited numbers, adding to its rarity and value.
44. Long Crimp
A type of booster pack with an extended crimp (the sealed edge), usually associated with older products.
45. Lugia
A fan-favorite Legendary Pokémon, with its cards, especially from the Neo sets, being highly valuable.
46. Master Set
A complete set of cards from a specific expansion, including all variants such as holos and reverse holos.
47. Mint Condition
A card that shows no signs of wear or damage, fresh out of the pack.
48. Mewtwo
A popular Legendary Pokémon, whose cards are highly sought after, especially from early sets.
49. Near Mint (NM)
A card that shows very minor wear but remains in excellent condition.
50. Pack Fresh
A card that was recently pulled from a booster pack and has not been handled excessively.
51. Penny Sleeve
A soft plastic sleeve used to protect a card, often paired with a toploader.
52. Pikachu
The mascot of Pokémon, with many of its cards being highly collectible, especially from Base Set and promotional releases.
53. Playability
A measure of how effective a card is during competitive play in the Pokémon TCG.
54. Pokémon Center
A special type of Trainer card that can be used in the game to heal Pokémon.
55. Pokémon League
An official program where players can compete in local tournaments or events.
56. Pop Report
A report showing how many copies of a particular card have been graded at specific grades by a grading company.
57. Prerelease
Special events held to give players access to cards from an upcoming set before its official release date.
58. Print Run
The production batch of a set or product. First Edition is often more valuable than later print runs.
59. PSA
Professional Sports Authenticator, a leading grading company that grades Pokémon cards.
60. Pull Rate
The likelihood of obtaining a rare or valuable card from booster packs.
61. Rainbow Rare
A type of Secret Rare card featuring rainbow-colored artwork.
62. Raw Card
A card that has not been graded or encapsulated by a grading company.
63. Rare
A card that is harder to find in packs, often indicated by a black star symbol.
64. Redemption Card
A card included in some packs that can be exchanged for a special or limited-edition card.
65. Reverse Holo
A card where the background (not the artwork) has a holographic finish.
66. Scalping
Buying up large quantities of products to resell at higher prices, often to capitalize on high demand.
67. Secret Rare
Cards numbered beyond the set number (e.g., 151/150), often featuring special artwork or foiling.
68. Sealed Product
Any unopened Pokémon card product, such as booster packs, boxes, or tins.
69. Set Symbol
A small icon located on the bottom corner of a card that identifies which set the card belongs to.
70. Shadowless
A variant of cards from early Pokémon sets, missing the shadow effect around the card’s border.
71. Shiny Pokémon
A rare variant of a Pokémon card that features a different color scheme than the standard version.
72. Short Print
A card that was printed in smaller quantities than others in the set, making it more difficult to find.
73. Single
An individual card, sold separately from packs or products.
74. Slab
A term used to describe a graded card that has been encapsulated in a protective plastic case.
75. Special Delivery Pikachu
A promotional Pikachu card given out by the Pokémon Center, highly sought after by collectors.
76. Staff Card
A special promotional card given to event staff members, often featuring a “Staff” stamp.
77. Subscription Box
A recurring product where customers receive random or themed Pokémon products on a regular basis.
78. Tag Team Cards
Cards that feature two Pokémon working together, introduced in the Sun & Moon series.
79. Theme Deck
A pre-built deck designed around a specific theme, sold for gameplay.
80. Toploader
A rigid plastic case used to protect cards during storage or shipping.
81. Trainer Card
A card that provides items or abilities to assist a player’s Pokémon in battle.
82. Ultra Rare
A card with a rarity higher than regular rare or holo cards, often featuring special designs.
83. Unlimited
A print run of a card set that does not have the “1st Edition” stamp.
84. V Card
A powerful type of Pokémon card introduced in the Sword & Shield series.
85. VMAX Card
A more powerful version of V cards, featuring evolved forms of V Pokémon.
86. Variant
Different versions of the same card, such as alternate art, holo, or reverse holo variations.
87. Vintage
Cards from early sets like Base Set, Jungle, and Fossil, often more valuable due to age and rarity.
88. WOTC (Wizards of the Coast)
The company that originally produced Pokémon cards in English until 2003.
89. XY Series
A set of expansions released during the XY era, introducing new game mechanics and Pokémon.
90. XY Evolutions
A nostalgic set released in 2016 that reprinted many of the original Base Set cards.
91. Zapdos
An iconic Legendary Pokémon, often seen on valuable cards from early sets.
92. Zekrom
A Legendary Pokémon from the Black & White series, featured on many popular cards.
93. Alt Art
An abbreviation for Alternate Art cards, which have unique illustrations compared to the regular versions.
94. Rainbow Foil
A card with a special rainbow-like holographic effect, commonly seen on Secret Rare cards.
95. Stamp
An identifying mark on certain cards, such as a “1st Edition” or “Pre-release” stamp, which often increases value.
96. GRA (Graded Gem Authentication)
A lesser-known but rising card grading company in the trading card community.
97. Die-Cut
Cards or promos that are not traditional rectangular shapes but have specific designs, often promotional.
98. Crossover
When a card graded by one company is resubmitted to another for re-evaluation and regrading.
99. Attack Cost
The number of Energy cards required to use a Pokémon’s attack in the TCG.
100. Weakness
A gameplay mechanic where certain types of Pokémon are more vulnerable to attacks from specific other types.