There are a lot of contract bridge terms that could be misunderstood when said away from the bridge table.

Bridge terms can be particularly inappropriate when suddenly yelled at your local bingo hall. (If you don’t believe me, yell “rubber” instead of “bingo” and see what happens.)

The good news is that non-bridge players can learn these bridge terms just as fast as they can pick up the rules of the game itself.

But where do terms like rubber and trump originate?

Here are 4 bridge terms and their origins.

1: Rubber

Within bridge and a handful of other sports, a “rubber” means a best-of-three match.

Rubber can also refer to:

(1) A material, as a noun;

(2) An action, as a verb;

(3) As slang for a condom, as a noun.

How did we get from one to the other?

Apparently, the answer lies in lawn bowling.

When one ball “rubs” another, you’ve got the need for a tie-breaker. A best-of-three match. A rubber.

That’s why it’s rubber bridge, or a rubber match.

2: Kibitz

In the bridge world, to “kibitz” means to watch a bridge match as a non-participant. (A “kibitzer” refers to the person who is doing the onlooking.)

The word “kibitz” derives from Yiddish.

Basically, it’s the sporting or conversational equivalent of backseat driving. When someone kibitzes, they watch and comment on the events, whether they’ve been asked to or not.

The origins of the word goes further back, to the German word “kiebitz”, which refers to a lapwing.

A type of bird, who often watches from the sidelines.

3: Trump

The origins of the word trump are rather simple.

First, it derives from the Italian word “trionfi”.

In turn, this comes from the Latin word “triumphus”, which means exactly what you would think.

As for why people can’t say it outside of bridge without picturing The Apprentice, that’s President Trump’s fault.

4: Ruff

Within bridge, a “ruff” is a desirable bridge move. The term “ruffing” refers to doing it. (But for some reason, the player is not referred to as a “ruffer” when this move occurs…)

A possible origin for the term (according to EtymOnline) is from the French term “ro(u)ffle” – but the word “ruff” can also refer to a type of collar.