Poker, a card game played in many variants. The object of the game is to win the pot, which is the sum total of all bets made by players in any one deal. This can be done by having a high-ranking poker hand, or by making a bet that no other player calls. The rules of poker are largely the same in all forms of the game.

A standard pack of 52 cards plus a joker is used for most games. The cards are ranked in order from highest to lowest (aces, kings, queens, jacks) and have suits: hearts, spades, diamonds and clubs. A pair of the same rank is a winning hand, but ties are broken by the highest unmatched card or secondary pairs in three-of-a-kind and four-of-a-kind hands (for example, Ks-Kd-5c-3d).

The poker game has spawned a number of ancillary activities, such as bluffing, reading tells and observing the behavior of other players at the table to learn what they are up to. This knowledge is critical to success in the game because it eliminates a portion of the luck element of the game. It also allows skilled players to exploit opponents and make a profit from the game.