Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Blackjack
Although blackjack is a straight forward game, people are often confused by the terms you commonly hear in blackjack. For example, the most common terms in blackjack are hit, stand and surrender. To hit, refers to asking for another card from the dealer.
Stand means to stay with your initial 2 card hand. Although it is entirely up to the person, the rule usually goes that if you have a 17 or higher you stand and if you have a 13 to a 16 depending on what card the dealer has showing you decide whether you want to hit or you want to take a chance at your odds and stand.
Surrendering means giving up right after your initial 2 cards are dealt and choosing to lose only half of your bet. Other terms also used in blackjack are "doubling down", "insurance", a "split", and a "soft hand".
Doubling down means doubling your bet after your initial 2 card deal when you are about to draw 1 more card but the bet has to be placed before the card is drawn and no more than one card may be drawn. Insurance is what you do when you see the dealer is showing an ace and feel strongly that the dealer holds a ten underneath.
To split means to get dealt a pair and split the cards into two hands betting equal amounts on both hands. A soft hand is when an Ace counts as 11 without making the player bust.