Double Lift: A very common move in Sleight Magic. You remove the top two cards so that they appear as one to the spectator.
Black Art:
a certain type of magic that uses black on black to vanish and hide people, objects, etc.
Bottom Deal:
To deal the bottom card when it looks like you are dealing the top card
Burn:
To let someone get a good look at something that is usually in motion. i.e. if you have a card back palmed you do not want to let the audience look at your hand long since they might find out the secret.
Card Fan:
This is when a deck of cards are held in one hand while the other hand fans them out in the shape of a fan. i.e. most magicians fan their cards so that an audience member can pick a card.
Clean:
When a magician is able to show their hands/sleeves/ without any worry that the secret will be revealed.
Confederate:
A person helping the magician that is acting like they are a part of the audience but they are actually helping out the magician complete his trick, a kind of secret assistant.
Control:
To be able to move a certain card to a specific position in the deck. i.e. a magician sometimes controls a selected card to the top of the deck which to the audience member looks like a regular shuffle or cut.
Crimp:
To secretly band a portion of a card to make it easier to find.
Cull:
To take out certain cards before or during a performance or to put certain cards in a certain order. i.e. to take out the jokers or the four Aces.
Ditch:
To secretly get rid of an object that is no longer needed but is still believed to be part of the trick.
False Count:
To count cards, coins, etc. in a manner to where it seems that there are more or less of that item.
False Shuffle:
A shuffle that looks just like a regular shuffle but none of the cards or only certain cards are shuffled. i.e. if a magician has 4 aces on the top of the deck they would perform a false shuffle and the 4 aces would remain on top of the deck while it seems that all the cards are being mixed.
Faro Shuffle:
A shuffle where the magician splits a deck in half and inserts them end to end so that each cards are evenly spread out, from this position the magician can make a giant fan.
Finger Break:
Magician inserts a finger under a certain card/cards so that the cards can be split at exactly that position.
Flash:
to expose a palmed ball/back palmed card/ etc.
Flash Paper:
Thin paper which is made so that it can be lit on fire and immediately create a flame and then evaporate. i.e. a magician can have a ball palmed in their right hand and they could be holding flash paper in their finger tips. The flash paper will be lit making a "flash" of fire and at the same time the ball can be thrown up making it seem that the fire turned into a ball.
Flourish:
This is the more artsy side of magic normally used with cards, balls, and coins. i.e. card flourishes include: card fans, 1 handed fans, one handed cut, one handed shuffle, ribbon slide, etc.
Force:
To make an audience member pick (usually) a certain card that they want them to or a certain picture.
Gimmick:
Some part of a trick/prop that is unnatural to the item. i.e. the Svengali deck is a gimmicked deck of cards because the it is made so that you are able to show a normal deck of cards and then turn all those cards into one card which can not be done with a regular deck of cards.
Glide:
A move used when performing a card trick that allows the magician to take the second to bottom card when it looks like they are taking the bottom card.
Grabber:
An audience member who can't help themselves from touching a magicians props without permission.
Hindu Shuffle:
A shuffle where the magician takes the deck on their right hand and with the left hand pulls off blocks of cards at one time, many different forces and sleights can be done with this shuffle.
Impromptu:
A trick that can be done immediately or without any advanced preparation.
Key Card:
A certain card in a deck that is usually marked with a pencil or in some kind of way so that it can be noticed easily from the back.
Lap:
An action that is secretly done while a magician is seated at a table which lets an object fall in their lap.
Load:
An item that is placed in something secretly without anyone's notice is loaded. i.e. in a Cups and Balls routine the magician loads several balls under the cup to make it seem as they appeared there.
Mechanics Grip:
A certain way that a deck of cards are held, usually to perform sleights or hide certain parts of the deck.
Miscall:
To purposely read something in an incorrect way so that the audience believes what you read is correct.
Misdirection:
To distract the audience or make them look another way so that you can secretly do something in the opposite direction. i.e. a magician can use misdirection to make the audience look to the left while a ball can be secretly taken out of a right pocket.
Palm:
To hold a ball, coin or any other small object in the hand but keeping the hand in a natural position so that the audience thinks your hand is empty but you are actually hiding something in your palm.
Patter:
Something that the magician says during a trick usually a story or something that explains the trick.
Peddle:
A maneuver that is used to move the top card of the deck to the bottom while cutting the deck.
Retention Vanish:
A sleight where the magician pretends to place a small object in one hand but is actually retaining it in the original hand. i.e. this move is usually used to vanish balls, coins, etc.
Routine:
A series of tricks that are performed one after the other which were usually put together in a certain order before the performance.
Sleight of Hand:
The manipulation of usually cards, balls and coins which is performed in the hand or fingers.
Steal:
opposite of Ditch. To secretly obtain an object without anyone knowing.
Square Up:
To take a deck of cards and align the edges of the cards.
Stacked Deck:
A deck of cards that is arranged in a certain order before the performance.
Strolling Magician:
A magician that usually performs at restaurants going from table to table performing small tricks for dinner guests.
Talk:
To accidentally bump or hit magic props together which might reveal their position or what they are. i.e. if a magician has 5 coins in their hand and is only showing 1 of the 5 coins he would not want the other coins to talk because the audience would find out that they have more than one coin in their hand
