THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY.......................

• Stuffing : a term which either means (1) useful intermediate cards in your longish suits such as 9's and 10's, or (2) what you knock out of your partner in order to off-load your pent-up anger and frustration
• Trick : what you like to play on your opponents, using one of many deceptive ploys that help make the game so maliciously exciting
• Pard : supposedly a slang term for partner, but the word was first heard when a geriatric bridge player with an acute speech defect attempted to say " partner " while sucking a humbug. For obvious reasons the new pronunciation took on, becoming very popular with players renown for monosyllabic vocalisations.
• Force : a term which has multiple meanings in bridge, two of the foremost being ( 1) something that you hope " may be with you " as you strive for galactic tops and universal success, and ( 2 ) the subsequent reputation you hope to attain as a result of your publicised successes, namely " a force to be reckoned with "
• Closed hand : a politically correct euphemism for " fist "
• Powerhouse : a hand, usually the closed one, which comes across the table with so much force that victims' teeth are often seen flying in all directions
• Reverse : the direction in which a player's body is rocked back after being hit full on with a powerhouse hand