📖 Helpful Terms

Pickleball vocabulary you need to know

VolleyHitting the ball before it bounces on your side of the court

DropSoft shot from backcourt that lands in the opponent's kitchen

KitchenNon-volley zone near the net where, if you step in, you can't volley

DriveFast, flat shot hit with power toward opponent

Kitchen LineLine marking the edge of the non-volley zone (the kitchen)

Split-StepSmall hop for balance before reacting to opponent's shot

DinkSoft shot that lands in the opponent's kitchen (non-volley zone)

Chicken WingAn awkward bent-elbow defensive shot, usually forced by a body attack

ATPAround-the-Post — a shot that travels around the net post instead of over it; legal and highly effective when pulled wide

ErneA volley hit while jumping to the side of the post, outside the kitchen; surprise attack that's hard to defend

Speed-UpSuddenly accelerating a dink into a fast drive to catch opponents off guard

ResetA soft, controlled shot used to slow down a fast rally and return to a neutral dinking exchange

StackingA doubles positioning strategy where both players line up on the same side after a serve or return to keep dominant sides in play

Third Shot DropThe serving team's 3rd shot — a soft arc into the kitchen that gives them time to advance to the NVZ

NVZNon-Volley Zone — official name for the kitchen; a 7-foot zone on each side of the net where volleys are illegal

LobA high arcing shot intended to sail over opponents at the net and land deep in their backcourt