Poker is a card game played between two or more players. Each player has a set of cards (referred to as their hand) and five community cards that are dealt face up on the table. Each player aims to make the best 5 card hand using their own two personal cards and the community cards. There are a number of betting intervals, or rounds, during the course of the hand. Players can also draw replacement cards to improve their hand during the round.

At the start of each betting interval a player must ante up some money (amount varies by game). Then when it is their turn they can say “call” to make a bet equal to the one made before them, or raise it. Alternatively they can say “drop” and put no chips into the pot. The highest hand wins the pot.

There is a great deal of skill and psychology involved in poker, especially when there are bets involved. Players are able to read each others’ expressions and tells to determine if they are bluffing. Some classic tells include a hand held over the mouth, sighing, nostril flaring, blinking excessively and an increase in pulse seen in the neck or temple.

Most poker games are played with a full deck of 52 cards, though some variant games use more than a single pack or add jokers. There are also many different ways to play poker, some of which are more competitive and fast-paced than others.