Poker is a card game played by two or more people. The object is to win a pot consisting of all bets made during a single deal. A player can win a hand by making a bet that other players must call or fold (discard their cards). In addition to betting, the game also involves bluffing, where players attempt to trick other players into thinking they have a better hand than they do.

Each round begins with a player placing one or more chips into the pot. Other players may choose to “call” the bet by putting in the same amount of chips or to raise it by adding more money. If a player raises, they must continue raising in subsequent rounds unless another player calls the new bet. If a player does not want to call the current bet, they can drop (fold).

There are many different poker variations. Each variation may have slightly different rules, but the majority of them share some basic principles. The most common are:

A poker hand is a combination of cards with a high rank or value, and can include the following: