With Wrestlemania 34 just around the corner, it’s important that we all brush up on our wrestling terminology. Whether you want to keep up with the smarks in the IWC, or you just want to impress your casual fan friends with your extensive wrestling vocabulary, here is all the terminology you’ll need to know two weekends from now.
Booking: The way the match is planned to end; who wins, who loses, and how
Vince McMahon loves booking Roman Reigns to win matches.
Botch: To perform a move incorrectly
When a wrestler botches a move, don’t be surprised if you hear a “BOTCHAMANIA!” chant.
Bump: To receive a move with a high-impact
Wrestlers must be careful when taking bumps in order to avoid injury.
Bury: To make a wrestler look weak by having them lose a match
Be careful if you wrestle a big match with Triple H, because he’ll probably bury you.
Casual Fan: Fans who watch wrestling every once in a while
A casual fan’s favorite wrestler would likely be someone like Randy Orton, simply because they enjoy the RKO Outta’ Nowhere memes.
Clean Finish: A match that ends with no cheating
Jinder Mahal never has a clean finish because he is always helped by the Singh Brothers.
Face (babyface): A wrestler meant to be perceived as a hero or good guy
AJ Styles is one of WWE’s most popular faces at the moment.
Feud: A rivalry between two wrestlers which typically lasts at least a few weeks; feuds typically climax at a pay-per-view, with one wrestler going over and the other losing
The winner of the feud between Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax will be determined at Wrestlemania.
Gimmick: The character a wrestler portrays
Woken Matt Hardy has one of the strangest gimmicks in the WWE at the moment.
Heat: A negative reaction from the fans (however, a negative reaction is the desired reaction for a heel)
The Miz can draw heat like no other heel in the WWE.
Heel: A wrestler meant to be perceived as a villain or bad guy
Kevin Owens has been a great heel since arriving in WWE a few years ago.
Heel/Face Turn: An event which marks a wrestler’s change from a hero to a villain (or vice versa)
Stone Cold’s heel turn against The Rock at Wrestlemania 17 is one of the most infamous heel turns in WWE history.
Hot Tag: When a face makes a tag to his tag partner after being dominated by the heel team for a few minutes; the face then gets in a quick burst of offense.
After several minutes of being dominated by The Usos, Xavier Woods makes a hot tag to Big E.
Indies: Wrestling promotions outside of the WWE
If all you watch is WWE, you probably don’t know indie wrestlers like Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks.
IWC: The Internet Wrestling Community; this is typically where smarks congregate
Sometimes I wish the WWE would listen to some of the smarks in the IWC.
Jobber: A wrestler who constantly loses
When’s the last time Bray Wyatt won a feud? He’s become a real jobber.
Kayfabe: Wrestling’s presentation as being a real competition rather than booked in advance
Almost everyone is aware of the lack of Kayfabe in today’s wrestling.
Kick-out: To get out of an opponent’s pin before the ref counts to three.
Roman Reigns always kicks out of everything.
Mark: A fan who believes the storyline is more important than the promotion making money.
Marks may not like John Cena because he is perceived as a better merchandise seller than wrestler.
No-sell: To get hit by an opponent’s move and not appear to be affected by it
Braun Strowman is monster of a man, so he can no-sell his weaker opponents’ moves.
Over: A wrestler who is accepted and liked by the fans.
A year or so ago Braun Strowman was hated for his lack of wrestling skills, but his performances in recent months have gotten him over with the fans.
Pinfall: One way to win a standard wrestling match; it requires one wrestler to pin his opponent’s shoulders against the mat for a three count
You can win a match via pinfall or submission.
Pop: A positive reaction from the crowd
If a wrestler comes to Philly and mentions the Eagles Super Bowl win, he’s likely to get a cheap pop from the crowd.
Promo: A segment in which wrestlers talk rather than wrestle; this includes monologues, interviews, and more
Chris Jericho is one of the best wrestlers at giving promos.
Push: To give a wrestler a chance at raising their status in the eyes of the fans
WWE attempted to push Jason Jordan by giving him a high-profile storyline with Kurt Angle. However, his push from mid-carder to main-eventer was halted by injury, and a lack of acceptance from fans.
Rest Hold: When a wrestler has another wrestler in a particular hold (like a sleeper hold), so the two wrestlers can get a quick rest and plan their next series of moves
Kevin Owens is the king of rest holds.
Screwjob: When the finish of a match is changed without telling the losing wrestler
The Montreal Screwjob was one of the most controversial events in wrestling history.
Sell: To react to an opponent’s move
Nobody sells a move (especially a chair shot) like Triple H can.
Shoot: When a wrestler goes off script or improvises
Wrestlers will often give shoot interviews talking about other wrestlers in which they reveal their true feelings about working with them.
Smark: A smart and critical mark
Some wrestlers don’t like smarks because they are too critical.
Spot: A planned move in the match; more often refers to a big, dangerous, or exciting moves in a match.
The TLC matches between the Hardy Boyz, Dudley Boyz, and Christian and Edge include some of the most iconic spots of all time.
Squash Match: A match with the sole purpose of making one wrestler look strong, while the other wrestler gets in no offense and ultimately jobs
If Braun Strowman were to fight any midcarder on the WWE roster, it would certainly end up a squash match.
Swerve: An unexpected twist
Stone Cold’s heel turn at Wrestlemania 17 was an incredible swerve because it was so unexpected.
Tap-out: To give up the match while locked in a submission hold
Samoa Joe often makes people tap-out by locking them in the Coquina Clutch.
Featured Image Credit: Megan Elice Meadows under CC 2.0
