Wrestling Glossary: 150+ Wrestling Terms and Definitions

This wrestling glossary defines more than 150 terms, from stance and shots to riding, pinning combinations, scoring rules, culture and gear. It covers American folkstyle along with freestyle and Greco-Roman, and it notes where the styles score or rule things differently. Terms are grouped by category and listed A–Z within each section.

Jump to a section: Stance and Motion · Takedowns and Shots · Tie-ups and Hand Fighting · Top and Riding · Bottom, Escapes and Reversals · Pins and Turns · Scoring and Rules · Styles and Competition · Culture, Slang and Gear

Stance and Motion

• Back step: A pivot where you step one foot behind the other and turn your hips, used to enter throws such as the headlock and hip toss.
• Base: The balance and stability you keep through your feet, knees and hips. A wrestler with good base is hard to move, lift or break down.
• Circling: Moving laterally around the opponent to change angles, avoid the edge of the mat and set up attacks.
• Down block: A defense where you use your forearm or hand to block a shot at the opponent's head or shoulder before they reach your legs.
• Drop step: A step where you drive your lead knee toward the mat between or beside the opponent's feet to close the distance on a shot.
• Fake: A movement that shows one attack to draw a reaction, which opens the real attack. It is also called a feint.
• Forward pressure: Steady movement and weight into the opponent that pushes them back, tires them out and forces reactions.
• Head position: Where your head sits relative to the opponent's head and body. In most exchanges, the wrestler whose head is higher and more inside has the better position.
• Lead leg: The leg closer to the opponent in a staggered stance. It is the first target for single legs and ankle picks.
• Level change: Lowering your hips by bending your knees before you shoot, so you can attack the legs without bending at the waist.
• Neutral position: The standing starting position where neither wrestler has control. Every match in folkstyle, freestyle and Greco-Roman begins here.
• Penetration step: The deep step a wrestler takes into the opponent's space when shooting, driving the hips under and through the opponent.
• Posture: How you hold your back and head. Good posture in wrestling usually means a flat back, head up and hips under you.
• Square stance: A stance with both feet even and roughly shoulder width apart. It protects both legs equally and makes it easy to shoot either way.
• Staggered stance: A stance with one foot in front of the other. It allows a longer shot off the lead leg and is the most common stance in folkstyle.
• Stance: The ready position you hold on your feet, with knees bent, back straight, hands up and weight on the balls of your feet.

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Takedowns and Shots

• Ankle pick: A takedown where you snap or push the opponent's head to load weight onto one leg, then grab that ankle as they step.
• Blast double: A double leg where you drive straight through the opponent's hips with speed and force, often knocking them straight back.
• Body lock: A takedown where you clasp your hands around the opponent's waist or upper body, usually from an over-under tie, and trip or lift them to the mat.
• Double leg: A takedown where you level change, step in deep and wrap both of the opponent's legs, then drive or lift to finish.
• Duck under: A move where you get your head under the opponent's arm and pop out behind them, usually from a collar tie or bicep tie.
• Finish: The final part of a takedown, where you turn a leg attack or tie-up into control on the mat. Many shots are lost because of a poor finish.
• Fireman's carry: A takedown where you drop to your knees under the opponent, trap one arm over your shoulder and reach between their legs, then roll them over your back.
• Go-behind: Any move where you get from in front of or beside the opponent to behind them, which in most cases scores a takedown once you establish control.
• Headlock: A throw where you wrap the opponent's head and one arm, back step across and hip them to their back. It can score big points, and it leaves you in trouble if it fails.
• High crotch: A shot where you drive your head outside the opponent's leg and reach your near arm deep between their legs, then finish as a single or double.
• Hip toss: A throw where you turn your hips in front of the opponent, load them across your back and drive them over to the mat.
• Lat drop: A throw where you secure an underhook, step across and drop to the mat while turning, pulling the opponent over with you.
• Low single: A single leg where you shoot low and grab the opponent's ankle or lower leg, often with your head on the mat beside their foot.
• Re-shot: A second attack after the opponent defends your first shot. It is also called chaining.
• Run the pipe: A single leg finish where you drop your inside knee, hold the leg tight and drive your shoulder into the opponent's thigh as you turn the corner, putting them down on their side.
• Scramble: A fast, messy exchange where neither wrestler has clear control and both are fighting to come out on top.
• Shot: Any leg attack where you change levels and drive in. "Taking a shot" is the most common way to start a takedown.
• Single leg: A takedown where you attack one of the opponent's legs, then finish by lifting, tripping, running the pipe or turning the corner.
• Snap down: A move where you pull the opponent's head and shoulders down so they fall forward to the mat, often into a front headlock.
• Sprawl: The main takedown defense, where you shoot your legs back and drop your hips onto the opponent's head and shoulders.
• Suplex: A throw where you lock around the opponent's body, arch backward and bring them over you. Folkstyle rules restrict how it can be finished, so check the rulebook before using it in competition.
• Sweep single: A single leg where you drop to one knee and swing to the outside of the opponent's lead leg, getting your head on the outside.

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Tie-ups and Hand Fighting

• Arm drag: A move where you pull the opponent's arm across their body by the triceps, which gets you to their side or back for a takedown.
• Bicep tie: A tie where you grip the opponent's arm just above the elbow to control it and set up shots and drags.
• Club: A short, sharp strike with your forearm across the opponent's neck or shoulder to move their head and break their stance. It must stay within the rules on unnecessary roughness.
• Collar tie: A tie where you place your hand behind the opponent's neck to control their head and posture.
• Double underhooks: A position where both of your arms are under the opponent's arms, which gives strong control of their upper body for body locks and throws.
• Front headlock: A position where you are in front of a bent-over or kneeling opponent with control of their head and an arm. It sets up go-behinds, cradles and turns.
• Hand fighting: The battle for grips, ties and inside position on the feet before anyone shoots. Most matches are decided by who wins it.
• Inside control: Having your hands, arms or ties inside the opponent's, which usually gives you better position and more attacks.
• Over-under: A tie-up where each wrestler has one overhook and one underhook. It is common in Greco-Roman and in folkstyle clinches.
• Overhook: A control where your arm wraps over the opponent's arm and traps it against your side.
• Post: A hand placed on the opponent's head, shoulder or hip to stop them from coming forward or shooting.
• Pummel: Swimming your arms inside the opponent's to win underhooks. It is also a common partner drill.
• Russian tie: A tie where you control one of the opponent's arms with both of yours, with one hand at the wrist and the other arm over the upper arm. It is also called the two-on-one or arm tie.
• Shuck: A move where you pull the opponent's head or arm past you and step to the side, putting them off balance so you can go behind.
• Throw-by: A move where you throw the opponent's arm across their body as you step to the outside, opening a route behind them.
• Tie-up: Any connection between the two wrestlers' arms, heads or bodies on the feet, such as a collar tie, underhook or two-on-one.
• Underhook: A control where your arm goes under the opponent's armpit and up onto their back or shoulder.
• Whizzer: An overhook used to defend an underhook or a single leg, usually by driving the arm down and sprawling the hips back.
• Wrist control: Holding the opponent's wrist to stop them from tying up, posting or reaching for your legs.

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Top and Riding

• Ankle ride: A ride where you control the opponent's ankle with one hand and their waist with the other to stop them from standing or sitting out.
• Breakdown: Any move that flattens the bottom wrestler from their base onto their stomach or side.
• Chest-to-back: Keeping your chest on the opponent's back from the top, which adds weight and limits their movement.
• Chop: A move where you strike or pull the bottom wrestler's near arm at the elbow so it collapses, which drops them toward the mat.
• Cross-body ride: A leg ride where you lie across the opponent's back and hook your leg around the leg on the opposite side of their body.
• Cross-face: A control where you drive your forearm across the opponent's face and grab their far arm, turning their head away from where they want to go.
• Cross wrist: A ride where you reach across the bottom wrestler's body to grab their far wrist, which pulls their base out from under them.
• Far side: The side of the bottom wrestler's body away from where the top wrestler is positioned.
• Hand control: Controlling the bottom wrestler's hands or wrists from the top so they cannot build a base or clear your grips.
• Leg ride: A ride where you wrap your leg around one of the opponent's legs. It is also called riding legs or putting in a hook.
• Mat return: A move that brings a standing bottom wrestler back down to the mat with control, usually by lifting and returning them safely.
• Near side: The side of the bottom wrestler's body closest to the top wrestler.
• Ride out: Holding the bottom wrestler down without letting them escape or reverse until the period ends.
• Riding: Controlling an opponent from the top position to keep them down and work toward turns and back points.
• Spiral ride: A ride where you keep tight waist control and circle around the opponent with chest pressure, breaking them down as they turn.
• Tight waist: A grip where you wrap one arm around the opponent's waist and hold them close to you from the top.
• Top position: The position above a wrestler who is down on the mat, from which you ride, break down and turn the opponent.
• Wrist ride: A ride where you control one of the opponent's wrists, often with two hands, to break their base.

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Bottom, Escapes and Reversals

• Bottom position: The position where you are down on your hands and knees with the opponent on top. In folkstyle, the referee's position puts the bottom wrestler on all fours with the top wrestler behind them.
• Building a base: Getting back to your hands and knees with your weight spread so the top wrestler cannot flatten you.
• Cut: A choice by the top wrestler to let the bottom wrestler go, giving up an escape point so the match restarts from neutral.
• Escape: Getting out from under the top wrestler to a neutral position facing them. In folkstyle, an escape scores 1 point.
• Granby roll: A shoulder roll where you turn over onto your shoulders and come out facing the opponent, used to escape, reverse or scramble.
• Hip heist: A move where you post your hand and swing your hips under you to turn and face the opponent.
• Inside leg stand-up: A stand-up from the bottom that starts by bringing your inside leg up first, followed by controlling the top wrestler's hands as you rise.
• Peterson roll: A roll from the bottom where you trap the top wrestler's arm and roll under them, catching a leg to come out on top or put them on their back.
• Reversal: Going from bottom position to top position with control in one move. In folkstyle, a reversal scores 2 points.
• Short sit: A small sit-out where you sit your hips through just far enough to turn and face the opponent or reach a switch.
• Side roll: A reversal where you trap the top wrestler's arm and roll to your side, bringing them over you.
• Sit-out: A move where you swing your legs out in front of you to sit down from the bottom position, creating space to turn in or stand.
• Stand-up: Getting from the bottom position to your feet while controlling the top wrestler's hands, then turning to face them for an escape.
• Switch: A reversal where you reach your arm over the top wrestler's arm and sit out, using it as a lever to get behind them.
• Turn-in: The move that follows a sit-out, where you turn to face the opponent to complete the escape.
• Wing: A reversal where you trap the top wrestler's arm against your body and roll toward it, flipping them onto their back.

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Pins and Turns

• Ankle lace: A turn where you lock both of the opponent's ankles together and roll them over. In freestyle it is called a leg lace and can be repeated for exposure points.
• Arm bar: A turn where you pull the opponent's arm behind their back and use it as a lever to roll them over. The wrestling arm bar is a control and turning tool and is applied with the arm bent, unlike the BJJ armbar.
• Back exposure: Any position where the opponent's back is turned toward the mat at an angle that meets the scoring criteria for near fall or exposure points.
• Belly down: Turning onto your stomach to keep your back away from the mat when the opponent is trying to turn you.
• Bridge: A defense where you arch your back and lift your shoulders off the mat with your head and feet, used to avoid a pin and start an escape.
• Cement mixer: A turn where you trap the opponent's head and one arm from the top and spin them over to their back.
• Cradle: A pin where you lock your arms around the opponent's head and one leg, curling them into a ball and rolling them to their back.
• Danger position: The international term for when a wrestler's back is turned toward the mat at less than a 90-degree angle. Throws and turns into the danger position score extra points in freestyle and Greco-Roman.
• Fall: A win, also called a pin, made by holding both of the opponent's shoulders or shoulder blades to the mat. In US folkstyle, the shoulders must be held for a set count, while freestyle and Greco-Roman require a brief, controlled touch.
• Far-side cradle: A cradle where you lock up the opponent's leg on the side away from you and roll them toward you.
• Fight off your back: Working to turn to your stomach or bridge out when you are on your back, which limits the near fall points the opponent can score.
• Guillotine: A pinning combination where you ride with a leg in, trap the opponent's near arm and stretch them backward onto their back while controlling their head. It is unrelated to the guillotine choke used in grappling and MMA.
• Gut wrench: A turn where you lock your hands around the opponent's waist and roll them across your body. It is one of the most common ways to score exposure points in freestyle and Greco-Roman.
• Half nelson: A pinning hold where you reach under the opponent's arm and place your hand on the back of their neck, then drive their head down to turn them over.
• Head and arm: A pin where you wrap the opponent's head and one arm together while chest to chest, holding their shoulders to the mat.
• Near fall: Holding the opponent in a pinning situation without completing a fall. In US folkstyle it earns back points that increase with how long the position is held, from 2 points up to 4, with some rule sets awarding an extra point when an injury or blood stoppage follows.
• Near-side cradle: A cradle where you lock up the opponent's leg on the side closest to you, usually by driving their head toward their knee.
• Pancake: A move where you use an over-under tie to drive the overhooked arm down while lifting the underhook, turning the opponent onto their back.
• Tilt: A move where you turn the opponent partway onto their back from the top, usually by levering a leg or arm, to score near fall points.
• Turk: A turn where you hook one of the opponent's legs with your leg and drive their upper body over, rolling them onto their back.

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Scoring and Rules

• Blood time: A timeout allowance for treating bleeding. Folkstyle rule sets give a separate, longer blood time allowance than injury time, and the clock resets each match.
• Caution: A penalty in freestyle and Greco-Roman for actions such as fleeing a hold, an illegal hold or refusing to take position. The opponent receives 1 or 2 points, and three cautions usually lead to disqualification.
• Challenge: A request to review a referee's call on video. Freestyle and Greco-Roman coaches challenge by throwing a challenge brick onto the mat, and college rules allow video review in many events.
• Choice: The option a folkstyle wrestler gets at the start of the second or third period to begin in top, bottom or neutral, or to defer the choice to the opponent.
• Criteria: The international method for breaking a tied score, which favors the wrestler with the highest-value move, then the fewest cautions, then the last point scored.
• Decision: A win on points when no one is pinned and no technical fall is reached. In US dual meets, a regular decision is worth 3 team points.
• Exposure: A freestyle and Greco-Roman score, usually 2 points, for turning the opponent's back through the danger position, such as with a gut wrench or leg lace.
• Fleeing the mat: Stepping or diving out of bounds to avoid being scored on. It is penalized in folkstyle, freestyle and Greco-Roman.
• Forfeit: A win awarded when an opponent does not show up or cannot compete. In dual meets it gives the winning team 6 team points.
• Grand amplitude: A freestyle and Greco-Roman term for a high, sweeping throw that takes the opponent off the mat in a big arc. These throws score 4 or 5 points depending on whether they land in the danger position.
• Illegal hold: A hold that endangers the opponent's joints, neck or spine, such as a full nelson or a slam. It results in a penalty or disqualification depending on the rule set.
• Injury time: The limited time a wrestler may use to recover from an injury during a match. If the wrestler cannot continue when the time runs out, the opponent wins by injury default.
• Major decision: A folkstyle win by 8 to 14 points. In dual meets it is worth 4 team points.
• Out of bounds: The area outside the wrestling surface. In folkstyle, action generally continues as long as the wrestlers keep enough contact inside the boundary, and the exact definition depends on the rule set.
• Passivity: A freestyle and Greco-Roman call against a wrestler who is not attacking. In freestyle, a passive wrestler is usually put on a 30-second shot clock and gives up a point if no one scores, and in Greco-Roman the active wrestler can be awarded a point and the choice to start in par terre.
• Period: A timed segment of a match. NCAA bouts use three periods of 3, 2 and 2 minutes, high school bouts use three 2-minute periods, and freestyle and Greco-Roman use two 3-minute periods.
• Potentially dangerous: A folkstyle call that stops action when a hold is about to injure a wrestler. It carries no penalty and is used to prevent harm before it happens.
• Push-out: A freestyle and Greco-Roman score of 1 point when you force the opponent out of bounds.
• Riding time: An NCAA scoring rule that awards 1 point to the wrestler who builds up at least one minute more time in the top position than the opponent. High school rules generally do not use riding time.
• Shot clock: A short, timed window in freestyle where a passive wrestler must score. If neither wrestler scores before it runs out, the opponent gets a point.
• Stalemate: A folkstyle call when neither wrestler can improve their position, which stops the action and restarts the wrestlers.
• Stalling: Avoiding wrestling, holding a position without trying to advance or backing away from the opponent. In folkstyle it usually draws a warning, then penalty points that grow with each call, and eventually disqualification.
• Sudden victory: An overtime period where the first wrestler to score wins. Folkstyle uses sudden victory and tiebreaker periods to settle tied matches.
• Takedown: Taking a standing opponent to the mat and getting control. Under current NCAA rules a takedown is worth 3 points, and high school rules moved to 3 points as well, with each state association deciding whether to adopt the change. In freestyle and Greco-Roman, a takedown is usually worth 2 points and big throws score more.
• Technical fall: A folkstyle win that ends the match early when one wrestler leads by 15 points.
• Technical superiority: The freestyle and Greco-Roman version of a technical fall, which ends the match when one wrestler leads by 10 points in freestyle or 8 points in Greco-Roman.
• Unsportsmanlike conduct: Behavior such as taunting, throwing headgear or arguing with officials. It is penalized with points and can lead to removal from the event.

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Styles and Competition

• Age groups: The divisions that sort wrestlers by age, such as youth, cadet, junior and senior. In international wrestling they are often listed as U15, U17, U20, U23 and senior.
• All-American: A college wrestler who places in the top eight at the NCAA Division I championships. Other divisions and organizations also name All-Americans by placement.
• Bracket: The chart that shows who wrestles whom in a tournament and how winners advance.
• Collegiate wrestling: The folkstyle wrestling used in US colleges, with NCAA rules that include riding time and three periods.
• Dual meet: A team competition where two teams wrestle one match at each weight class and add up team points to decide the winner.
• Folkstyle: The style used in most US high schools and colleges. It rewards control on the mat, with points for escapes, reversals and riding the opponent.
• Freestyle: An Olympic style where wrestlers can attack the legs, and scoring favors takedowns, exposure and big throws. It is the main international style for men and women.
• Greco-Roman: An Olympic style where wrestlers cannot attack below the waist or use their legs to trip or lift. It rewards upper-body throws, lifts and clinch work.
• NCAA: The National Collegiate Athletic Association, which governs most US college wrestling and hosts the national championships.
• NFHS: The National Federation of State High School Associations, which writes the wrestling rulebook most US high school state associations follow.
• Par terre: A French term, meaning "on the ground," for the mat position in freestyle and Greco-Roman where one wrestler starts on the bottom, usually after a passivity call.
• Referee: The official on the mat who calls points, penalties and falls. Larger events add a judge and a mat chairman to review scoring.
• Repechage: The international system that lets wrestlers who lost to the finalists wrestle back for a chance at a bronze medal.
• Skin check: A check by a doctor, trainer or official before competition to make sure a wrestler has no contagious skin condition. Wrestlers with an open infection are not allowed to compete.
• Team points: The points a team earns for each individual win in a dual meet or tournament. In most US folkstyle duals, a decision is worth 3, a major decision 4, a technical fall 5 and a fall 6, though exact values can vary by rule set.
• UWW: United World Wrestling, the international governing body for freestyle, Greco-Roman and other wrestling styles. It runs the World Championships and sets Olympic wrestling rules.
• Weigh-in: The official check that confirms a wrestler is at or under their weight class. Timing and allowances vary between high school, college and international events.
• Weight certification: A high school program that measures body fat and hydration early in the season to set the lowest weight a wrestler may compete at and how fast they may drop to it.
• Weight class: The weight division a wrestler competes in. NCAA men's wrestling has 10 weight classes, high school usually has 14 and international senior events have 10 per style.
• Wrestle-off: A match between teammates at the same weight to decide who earns the varsity or lineup spot.
• Wrestlebacks: The consolation rounds in a folkstyle tournament where wrestlers who lose can keep competing for third place and other placings.

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Culture, Slang and Gear

• Cauliflower ear: A swollen, hardened ear caused by repeated friction and impact that lets blood collect under the skin. Wearing headgear and draining the ear early help prevent it.
• Cutting weight: Losing weight before a weigh-in to compete in a lower weight class. Many rule sets now limit how fast and how far wrestlers can cut, because extreme cuts are dangerous.
• Drilling: Repeating a technique with a cooperative partner until the movement becomes automatic.
• Funk: A wrestling style built on unusual scrambles, rolls and counters from positions where most wrestlers would be in trouble.
• Headgear: Hard-shell ear guards that protect the ears from cauliflower ear. They are required in US folkstyle and optional in freestyle and Greco-Roman.
• Heavy hips: A wrestler who is hard to lift, turn or score on because they keep their weight low and sprawl well.
• Herpes gladiatorum: A contagious skin infection caused by the herpes simplex virus, spread by skin contact on the mat. It is one of the main reasons for skin checks and disinfecting mats.
• Kneepads: Padded sleeves worn over one or both knees to protect them from mat burn and impact on shots.
• Live wrestling: Full-speed wrestling in practice, where both partners try to score. It is also called going live.
• Mat: The padded wrestling surface, marked with a circle and starting lines. It should be cleaned and disinfected before every practice.
• Mouthguard: A guard worn over the teeth to protect them from impact. High school rules require one for wrestlers who wear braces.
• Practice gear: The clothes worn for daily training, such as shorts, compression layers, t-shirts and hoodies, which should be washed after every practice.
• Ringworm: A contagious fungal skin infection that causes a round, scaly rash. Despite its name, it has nothing to do with worms, and it is common in wrestling rooms that are not kept clean.
• Room: The wrestling room where a team trains. "What happens in the room" is how wrestlers refer to the daily work that never shows up on a scoreboard.
• Rubber suit: A sweat suit made of rubber or plastic used to lose water weight. Most US high school and college rules ban rubber suits because of the health risks.
• Scrambler: A wrestler who excels in fast exchanges where neither person has control.
• Shark bait: A drill where one wrestler stays in while a fresh partner comes in every round or after each score.
• Singlet: The one-piece, tight-fitting uniform worn in wrestling competition. It is designed so officials can see the body clearly and opponents cannot grab loose fabric.
• Two-piece uniform: A competition option that pairs a compression shirt with fitted shorts. US high school rules allow it in place of a singlet.
• Wrestling shoes: Lightweight, high-top shoes with thin, flexible soles that grip the mat and support the ankles. Many rule sets ban exposed laces, so wrestlers tuck or tape them.
• Wrestling t-shirts: Practice and team shirts worn in the room, at tournaments and away from the mat. Read about wrestling t-shirts for what to look for in fit and fabric.

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Keep learning

A glossary gives you the words, and the room teaches you what they mean. If you also train jiu-jitsu, the BJJ glossary covers the grappling terms that cross over between the two. When you are ready to go deeper on gear, care and training, browse the full Pressure Point Learn hub.

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