A
- Ad / Advantage
- The point won at deuce in tennis-style scoring. Win another point to take the game; lose it and the score returns to deuce.Many amateur padel leagues skip advantage altogether and use the 'golden point' instead — a single decisive point at 40-40.
- Americano
- A rotational social format in which players continuously change partners across short games and individual points are tracked. Popular for one-off mixers and beginner-friendly events.
B
- Bandeja
- A defensive overhead shot played with slice, designed to keep your team at the net rather than win the point outright. The bandeja arcs deep into the opponents' court so they can't attack.Pronounced 'ban-DEH-ha' (it's Spanish for 'tray', because the racket motion looks like carrying a tray). Mastering bandejas is a key marker of moving from improver to intermediate.
- Block
- A short, controlled return played with little or no swing — used most often to handle hard, fast shots and reset the rally.
C
- Chiquita
- A short, low ball intentionally played at the feet of opposing net players, designed to force a difficult half-volley. Among the most useful shots in amateur play.Pronounced 'chee-KEE-ta'. Spanish for 'little one'.
D
- Deuce
- The score when both teams reach 40 (40-40). Standard scoring requires two consecutive points to win the game from deuce; golden-point formats end the game on the very next point.
- Dink
- A soft, low shot played gently over the net and into the no-man's-land between the opposing baseline and the net. Effective at slowing rallies and pulling opponents forward.
- Doubles
- Two-against-two play. Padel is doubles only — there is no recognised singles format in the standard sport.
- Double fault
- Losing two consecutive serves in the same point, automatically giving the point to the receiving team.
E
- EVA
- Ethylene-vinyl acetate — the foam material used inside most padel racket cores. Available in soft, medium and hard densities, which determine how much power vs control a racket offers.
F
- Fault
- A serve or shot that breaks the rules — for example, a serve into the wrong service box, a serve that hits the side fencing, or a return that didn't bounce on the floor before being struck.
- Frame shot
- A mishit where the ball strikes the edge of the racket rather than the face. Beginners do this often; advanced players almost never.
G
- Glass
- The tempered-glass back wall and lower side walls of a padel court. Balls can be played off the glass after they have first bounced on the floor.
- Golden point
- A 'first to one' format used at deuce. Whichever team wins the next point at 40-40 wins the game outright. Used in many amateur leagues — including Padel Loop — because it speeds matches up to fit time-capped bookings.
K
- Knockout
- A tournament format where one loss eliminates a team. Standard for one-day tournaments. See also: round-robin, double elimination.
L
- Lob
- A high shot designed to clear opposing net players and land deep in their court. Padel's most important defensive shot — the team in trouble lobs to reset the point.
M
- Match tie-break
- A tie-break used in lieu of a third set. Usually first to 10 points with a 2-point lead. Common in time-capped league formats and doubles play.
- Mexicano
- A competitive variation of Americano in which partner pairings are determined by current rankings — players closest in score are paired together. Used for club mixers with a leaderboard.
P
- Padel
- A doubles racket sport played on a 20m × 10m glass-walled court using a solid (no-string) racket and a slightly depressurised tennis ball. Tennis-style scoring is used. Padel is one of the world's fastest-growing sports.
- Padel court
- An enclosed 20m × 10m playing area with a 88-92cm net, tempered-glass back and lower side walls, metal-mesh upper side walls, and a service line 6.95m from the net.
- Por tres
- A spectacular winning shot in which the ball is hit so hard it bounces on the opposing side and rebounds out of the court entirely (over the back glass or out of the side fencing).Spanish for 'by three' — the fence has three sides. Legal as long as the ball bounced on opponents' court first.
R
- Round-robin
- A league format in which each team plays every other team in the division at least once. The standings at the end determine the winner. Most amateur padel leagues — including Padel Loop — are round-robin.
- Rebound
- The ball coming off the back glass or side wall after first bouncing on the floor. Letting the ball rebound and playing it on the way back into court is one of padel's defining mechanics.
- Rush the net
- Moving forward to take the net position aggressively, usually after a strong serve or a deep return. The team at the net wins most amateur points.
S
- Serve
- An underarm shot used to start a point. The ball is bounced once on the floor behind the service line, then struck at or below waist height into the diagonal service box.
- Service box
- The marked area on the receiving side of the court into which the serve must land. Bounded by the net, the central service line and the line 6.95m from the net.
- Set
- Won by the first team to six games with a margin of two. At 6-6 a tie-break is played.
- Smash
- A powerful overhead shot played from above shoulder height, usually after a weak lob. Ranges from controlled (víbora, bandeja with intent) to spectacular (por tres).
- Sweet spot
- The area on the racket face that gives the cleanest, most controlled shot. Round-shaped rackets have larger sweet spots in the centre of the face and are most beginner-friendly; diamond-shaped rackets have smaller sweet spots higher up.
T
- Tie-break
- Played at 6-6 in a set. First team to 7 points wins, with a 2-point lead. The first server serves one point; thereafter serve alternates every two points.
U
- Underarm serve
- Padel's only legal serve. Bounce the ball on the floor, then strike it at or below waist height into the diagonal service box.
V
- Víbora
- An aggressive overhead shot played with sidespin (the racket cuts across the ball). The result is a hooking shot that kicks low and away from opponents. More risk than the bandeja, more reward.Pronounced 'VEE-bo-ra'. Spanish for 'viper'.
- Volley
- A shot struck before the ball bounces on your side. Volleying from the net is the dominant winning position in padel.
W
- Walls
- The glass and metal-mesh surfaces enclosing the padel court. The ball is in play after rebounding off the walls — provided it touched the floor first.
- WPT / Premier Padel
- The professional padel tour. The World Padel Tour and Premier Padel circuits merged into a unified men's and women's tour in 2024, broadcast widely and on YouTube.