Chess Terminology and Glossary

The king starts on the square e1 on the white side and e8 on the black side.

A double pawn push is a move where a pawn advances two squares from its starting position.

Castling is a move where a player moves their king and a rook in one move.

Pawn promotion is a move where a pawn reaches the eighth rank and is promoted to a queen, rook, bishop, or knight.

Checkmate is the situation where a player's king is under attack and has no legal move to escape.

Capture is the move where a player captures an opponent's piece by moving their own piece to the same square.

En passant is the move where a player moves their pawn forward two squares and captures an opponent's pawn that is diagonally in front of it.

A pawn chain is the situation where a player has three pawns on adjacent files and the opponent's king is behind them.

A passed pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the seventh rank and the opponent's king is on the eighth rank.

An isolated pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the sixth rank and the opponent's king is on the seventh rank.

A backward pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the fifth rank and the opponent's king is on the sixth rank.

A queenside pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the fourth rank and the opponent's king is on the fifth rank.

A kingside pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the third rank and the opponent's king is on the fourth rank.

A queenside pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the second rank and the opponent's king is on the third rank.

A kingside pawn is the situation where a player has a pawn on the first rank and the opponent's king is on the second rank.