Rake
Rake is the fee the house takes for running the game: a share of each pot in cash games, or a part of the buy in in tournaments.
It is the reason poker is not a zero sum game between the players. Every pot returns slightly less than went into it, so a table of equally skilled players all lose slowly, and a small edge can still add up to a losing result once the fee is paid.
How much is taken varies by room, by stake and by game, and the terms are published rather than guessed at. In cash games it is usually a percentage of the pot with a fixed cap, and in tournaments it is normally shown next to the buy in, so the figure that matters is the one your own room states.
an example
your cards
board
You flop three aces and win a large pot. The amount that reaches your stack is the pot minus the rake taken by the room. That difference is small in one hand and is the entire margin over thousands of them.
This example is made up. The real one is in your own hand history: find rake in your own hands and see how often it came up and what it cost you.
related terms
Bankroll
Your bankroll is the money set aside for poker and nothing else, kept separate from the money you live on.
Blinds
The blinds are the two forced bets posted before any cards are dealt, by the two players to the left of the button, so t ...
EV
Expected value, or EV, is the average result of a decision if you could repeat it many times: every outcome multiplied b ...
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Knowing the word is not the same as seeing it.
The full order of play, from the blinds to the showdown.