Professional Wrestling and Sports Entertainment Glossary

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Babyface: A wrestler who portrays the "good guy" in a match, often favored by the audience.

Heel: A wrestler who portrays the "bad guy" and usually draws the ire of the crowd.

Turn: When a wrestler changes from babyface to heel or vice versa.

Promo: A speech or interview segment used to advance a storyline or build up a match.

Kayfabe: The portrayal of events within the industry as real, maintaining the illusion of wrestling as a competitive sport.

Work: An event or situation that is scripted or staged.

Shoot: An unscripted event or situation that happens in real life, often unexpected.

Angle: A storyline or plot in wrestling.

Gimmick: The character or persona a wrestler portrays.

Heat: Negative reaction from the audience, often directed towards heels.

Pop: A positive reaction from the crowd, often in response to a babyface or a significant moment.

Smark: A fan who is aware of the behind-the-scenes workings of the wrestling business.

Jobber: A wrestler who routinely loses to make other wrestlers look strong.

Squash Match: A one-sided match designed to quickly establish a wrestler's dominance.

No-Sell: When a wrestler does not show that they are affected by their opponent’s moves.

Sell: The act of a wrestler showing that they are hurt or affected by their opponent’s moves.

Over: When a wrestler is popular and has a strong connection with the audience.

Bump: Taking a fall or hit to the mat to make a move look impactful.

Spot: A pre-planned sequence of moves or events in a match.

Booking: The process of planning and scripting matches and storylines.

Push: When a wrestler is being promoted to a more prominent position within the company.

Finish: The ending of a match, usually involving a finishing move.

Finisher: A wrestler’s signature move that usually leads to a match’s conclusion.

Dusty Finish: A match finish involving a controversial or confusing outcome, named after Dusty Rhodes.

Run-In: When a wrestler enters the ring during a match to interfere.

Blading: The act of cutting oneself to produce bleeding during a match.

Hardway: Bleeding that occurs unintentionally during a match, usually from a legitimate injury.

House Show: A non-televised live wrestling event.

Pay-Per-View (PPV): Major wrestling events broadcast live, which viewers pay to watch.

Dark Match: A match that takes place before or after the televised portion of a wrestling event.

Shoot Interview: An interview in which a wrestler speaks out of character, discussing real-life events and opinions.

Stiff: When a wrestler uses moves or strikes that are more forceful than usual.

Strong Style: A wrestling style that emphasizes stiff strikes and realistic, hard-hitting action.

High Spot: A flashy, high-risk move designed to excite the audience.

Rib: A practical joke played by wrestlers, often on each other.

Gorilla Position: The area just behind the curtain where wrestlers wait before entering the ring.

Tag Team: A match where two teams of wrestlers compete, tagging in and out.

Hot Tag: A moment in a tag team match when a face wrestler finally tags in a fresh partner after being isolated by the heels.

Feud: A prolonged rivalry between two or more wrestlers or teams.

Faction: A group of wrestlers who align themselves together for a common cause.

Stable: Another term for a faction, often used interchangeably.

Mark: A fan who believes in the kayfabe nature of wrestling, seeing it as a real competition.

Hardcore Match: A match with relaxed rules, allowing the use of weapons and outside interference.

Ladder Match: A match where wrestlers use ladders to retrieve an object suspended above the ring.

Royal Rumble: A match where wrestlers enter at timed intervals, aiming to eliminate others by throwing them over the top rope.

Cage Match: A match held inside a steel cage, preventing escape and outside interference.

Hell in a Cell: A type of cage match with a roof on the cage, often used in WWE.

Tables Match: A match where the winner must put their opponent through a table.

Submission Match: A match where the winner must make their opponent submit or tap out.

Iron Man Match: A match with a fixed duration, where the wrestler with the most falls or submissions wins.

Count-Out: When a wrestler is outside the ring for a set count (usually ten or twenty) and loses the match.

Disqualification (DQ): When a wrestler breaks the rules and is disqualified from the match.

Pinfall: Winning a match by holding an opponent’s shoulders on the mat for a three-count.

Submission: Winning a match by making the opponent tap out or verbally submit.

Triple Threat Match: A match involving three wrestlers, with no disqualifications.

Fatal Four-Way Match: A match involving four wrestlers, with no disqualifications.

Battle Royal: A match where multiple wrestlers compete to throw each other over the top rope, with the last remaining wrestler winning.

Gauntlet Match: A series of matches where one wrestler faces multiple opponents in succession.

Elimination Chamber: A match held inside a large, enclosed structure, where wrestlers are eliminated one by one.

Falls Count Anywhere: A match where pinfalls or submissions can occur outside the ring.

Street Fight: A match with no rules, often involving weapons and brawling outside the ring.

Texas Death Match: A hardcore match where a wrestler must be pinned and then fail to answer a ten-count.

Mixed Tag Team: A tag team match involving both male and female wrestlers on each team.

Intergender Match: A match between a male and a female wrestler.

Managers: Individuals who accompany wrestlers to the ring, often serving as mouthpieces or interfering on their behalf.

Valet: A female manager who accompanies a wrestler to the ring.

Commentators: Announcers who call the action and provide commentary during matches.

Ring Announcer: The person who introduces wrestlers and announces the results of matches.

Referee: The official who enforces the rules and determines the outcome of the match.

Timekeeper: The person responsible for keeping track of match times and ringing the bell.

Ring Crew: The team responsible for setting up and maintaining the ring and equipment.

Entrance Music: The theme music that plays when a wrestler enters the arena.

Pyro: Pyrotechnics used during a wrestler’s entrance or during special events.

TitanTron: A large video screen used to display wrestler entrances and other video content.

Tron Video: The video package that plays on the TitanTron during a wrestler’s entrance.

Merchandise: Items sold to fans, such as t-shirts, posters, and action figures.

Fan Signs: Signs made by fans to show support for wrestlers or express opinions.

Chant: A coordinated cheer or boo from the audience.

Face Turn: When a heel wrestler becomes a babyface.

Heel Turn: When a babyface wrestler becomes a heel.

Booking Committee: A group responsible for creating storylines and planning matches.

Creative Team: Another term for the booking committee, focusing on storytelling and character development.

Developmental Territory: A smaller promotion affiliated with a larger one, used to train new wrestlers.

Performance Center: A training facility for wrestlers, often associated with WWE.

Indie Wrestling: Independent wrestling promotions not affiliated with major companies like WWE or AEW.

Main Event: The final and most important match on a wrestling card.

Mid-Card: Wrestlers who are in the middle of the card, not main eventers but not jobbers either.

Opening Match: The first match on a wrestling card, designed to excite the crowd.

Undercard: The matches that take place before the main event.

Card: The lineup of matches for a wrestling event.

PPV Buyrate: The number of purchases for a pay-per-view event.

House: The attendance or revenue for a live wrestling event.

Gate: The total amount of money made from ticket sales for a wrestling event.

Draw: A wrestler who attracts a large audience or generates significant revenue.