P.e. Bowling Terms From Lesson 7

Front 1

alley

Back 1

bowling lanes (not a preferred term today)

Front 2

anchor man

Back 2

the player who bowls last on a team; usually the best bowler or the one who bowls best under competitive pressure

Front 3

approach

Back 3

1) method used by the bowler to move towards the foul line to release the ball, 2) the area behind the foul line that must be at least 15' long

Front 4

baby split

Back 4

after 1st ball, 3 and 10 pins (right handed) or 2 and 7 pins (left handed)

Front 5

backup

Back 5

a ball that fades away to the right (right handed) or left (left handed)

Front 6

backup lane

Back 6

lane on which the ball is inclined to veer to the right (used to be called backup alley)

Front 7

bed posts

Back 7

7-10 split

Front 8

big four

Back 8

4-6-7-10 split

Front 9

blow

Back 9

an error (usually failure to make a spare when there is no split)

Front 10

break

Back 10

failure to knock down all pins with two balls

Front 11

brooklyn

Back 11

a cross-over ball that usually hits to the left of center in the 1-2 pocket and results in a strike; or same for a left handed bowler who strikes by hitting on the right side in the 1-3 pocket

Front 12

bucket

Back 12

the 2-4-5-8 or 3-5-6-9 leave; sometimes called the dinner bucket

Front 13

cherry

Back 13

knocking over or chopping off only the front pin or pins of a spare

Front 14

cross-over

Back 14

same as brooklyn

Front 15

curve

Back 15

a ball that has a wide, sweeping arc, much more pronounced movement than a hook

Front 16

dead ball

Back 16

1) an ineffectively delivered ball that stimulates little pin action, 2) any ball rolled when the pins are set improperly or one bowled on the wrong alley

Front 17

double

Back 17

two strikes in succession

Front 18

double pinochle

Back 18

the 4-6-7-10 split

Front 19

dutch 200

Back 19

a score of 200 obtained by the alternate bowling of strikes and spares

Front 20

error

Back 20

failure to make a spare when no split was left by the previous ball, same as a blow, marked by (-)

Front 21

foul line

Back 21

the line that seperates the approach from the lane

Front 22

frame

Back 22

1) 1/10 of a game, 2) the square on the score sheet in which the score for a given frame is marked

Front 23

graveyard

Back 23

a defective or difficult lane or alley to score on

Front 24

groove

Back 24

a defect or mark in a bowling lane, usually caused by wear, which tends to carry the ball into the pocket

Front 25

gutter

Back 25

a trough extending down each side of the lane from the foul line to the pit, into which an inaccurately bowled ball may roll before it arrives at th pins; a modern term for this is channel

Front 26

head pin

Back 26

the number 1 pin

Front 27

high board

Back 27

a board in the lane which is higher than the others, marking the lane defective

Front 28

holding lane

Back 28

a lane on which it is difficult to obtain a curve or hook; formerly called a holding alley

Front 29

hook

Back 29

the ball starts out straight down the lane and then veers to the left for a right-handed bowler or to the right for a left-handed bowler

Front 30

kegler

Back 30

a synonym for bowler, derived from the German word for pin- "kegel"

Front 31

kickback

Back 31

the board at the pit end of the lane that seperates one lane from another

Front 32

lane

Back 32

the surface on which the ball is bowled; preferred to the former term "alley"

Front 33

lead off

Back 33

the first team player on a team to bowl

Front 34

leave

Back 34

the number and location of the pins that remain standing after a ball is bowled

Front 35

lily

Back 35

the 5-7-10 split

Front 36

line

Back 36

a complete game as recorded on the score sheet

Front 37

looper

Back 37

the same as a hook

Front 38

maple

Back 38

a bowling pin

Front 39

mark

Back 39

a strike or spare

Front 40

pin bowler

Back 40

a bowler who aims directly at the pins when bowling

Front 41

pit

Back 41

the area at the far end of the lane into which the pins are knocked in bowling or swept into after bowling

Front 42

pocket

Back 42

the space or hole between the 1 and 3 pins (right) or 1 and 2 (left)

Front 43

railroad

Back 43

a term used by some for a split or at least for certain kinds of splits

Front 44

running lanes

Back 44

a lane the produces a more decided hook

Front 45

sleeper

Back 45

a spare situationin which a pin is hidden behind another

Front 46

slot lane

Back 46

a lane on which strikes are easy to get; formerly called a slot alley

Front 47

slow lanes

Back 47

lanes with surfaces that make it easy to hook or curve the ball, same as running lanes

Front 48

span

Back 48

the distance between the thumb and finger holes in a bowling ball

Front 49

spot

Back 49

the place on a lane at which a bowler aims the ball and over which the bowler hopes it will roll

Front 50

spot bowler

Back 50

a bowler who aims at a spot a certain distance from the foul line and over which he anticipates it will roll

Front 51

tap

Back 51

a pin left standing after what appeared to be a good hit

Front 52

thin

Back 52

a term applied to a bowled ball that barely touches the head pin, sometimes called a light hit. the opposite is full or heavy hit