Terms

Xiangqi glossary

If a guide uses a word you do not know, look it up here. The glossary explains sixty terms, from the pieces and the rules to the names of openings and mating patterns. Each entry gives the term in Chinese characters, with both forms where Red and Black write a piece differently, and most entries also give the pinyin.

By the Xiangqi Arena team · Updated October 19, 2026

Advisor (shi)仕 / 士: The advisor moves one point diagonally, captures the same way and may never leave the palace, so it can stand on only five points. Each side has two, one on either side of the general at the start. Red's advisors carry the character 仕 and Black's carry 士.
Edge cannon (bianpao)边炮: An edge cannon is a cannon moved to one of the edge files, the a-file or the i-file. In the edge cannon opening, Red's first move takes a cannon from h2 to i2, and the model line then brings out the horse and the chariot on that wing.
Soldier (bing/zu)兵 / 卒: The soldier moves and captures one point forward, and once it has crossed the river it may also step one point sideways. It never moves backward and is never promoted, so a soldier that reaches the last rank can only move sideways. Each side has five: Red's carry the character 兵 and Black's carry 卒.
Cannon (pao)炮 / 砲: The cannon moves like the chariot, any distance along a file or rank. To capture, it must jump over exactly one piece of either colour, called the screen. Each side has two cannons: Red's carry the character 炮 and Black's carry 砲.
Central cannon (zhongpao)中炮: The central cannon is a cannon moved to the centre file, as in Red's first move h2e2 or its mirror b2e2, where it aims at the soldier in front of the opposing general. It is the most common opening, and the most common reply brings out the horse on the same side to guard that soldier.
Chariot (ju)俥 / 車: The chariot moves and captures any distance along a file or rank, but it cannot jump over pieces. Its value of 9 is the highest in the piece values table, and it is usually stronger than any two horses or cannons together. Each side's two chariots start in the corners; Red's carry the character 俥 and Black's carry 車.
Check (jiangjun)将军: A check is a move that threatens to capture the opposing general on the next move. When you are in check, you must answer it at once. A player who keeps giving check in a repeating sequence loses the game under the perpetual check rule.
Checkmate (jiangsi)将死: Checkmate is a check that no move can answer, and the player who is checkmated loses the game. The checkmate patterns guide shows twelve mating patterns on animated boards.
Double chariots双车: Double chariots are a side's two chariots working as a pair, for example on two open files. In the staggered chariots mate, they take turns to give check.
Crossing the river过河: Crossing the river means moving a piece over the river into the opponent's half. The river changes the rules for only two pieces: a soldier that has crossed may also move sideways, and its value in the table rises from 1 to 2, while an elephant may not cross at all.
Single horse defence (dantima)单提马: The single horse defence answers the central cannon with one horse towards the centre and the other on the edge. In the model line, Black's third move plays the second horse from b9 to a7, while the screen horses defence plays it to c7.
Double check (shuangjiang)双将: A double check is a move after which two pieces give check at once. Unlike in chess, a double check in xiangqi can sometimes be blocked, and in one case a piece other than the general can answer it by a capture. The checkmate patterns guide ends with a double check by a horse and a chariot that no block or capture can answer.
Mutual pawn opening (duibingju)对兵局: In the mutual pawn opening, each side starts by advancing a soldier on the third or seventh file: in the guide, Red plays g3g4 and Black answers c6c5. Each side's second move then brings out the horse behind the soldier that moved.
Elephant (xiang)相 / 象: The elephant moves and captures exactly two points diagonally and stays on its own side of the river, so it can reach only seven points. A piece on the point in between, the elephant's eye, blocks the move. Red's elephants carry the character 相 and Black's carry 象.
Elephant's eye象眼: The elephant's eye is the point halfway along an elephant's two-point diagonal move. If a piece of either colour stands there, the elephant cannot move that way, and putting a piece there is called blocking the elephant's eye (塞象眼, sai xiangyan).
Facing generals飞将: The two generals may never stand on the same file with no piece between them, so a move that leaves them facing each other is illegal. This is also called the flying general rule, because a general facing the other could fly across the board and capture it. In the endgame it lets one general hold the other back, and the white-face general mate depends on it.
Counter-palace horse (fangongma)反宫马: The counter-palace horse is a defence to the central cannon: Black develops both horses and puts a cannon between them on the d-file or the f-file, where the advisors start. In the model line the horses go to c7 and g7 and the cannon goes to f7.
Flying elephant (feixiang)飞相局: In the flying elephant opening, Red's first move brings an elephant to the centre file, from g0 to e2 in the model line. It is one of Red's common first moves besides the central cannon, and openings of this kind are generally less bound by theory.
Position string (FEN)FEN 局面字符串: A FEN string is one line of text that records a whole position: which piece stands on each point, rank by rank, and which side moves next. With it you can save or share a position without a diagram.
File路 / 竖线: A file is one of the nine vertical lines of the board. Xiangqi Arena names the files a to i from Red's left, while the traditional notations number them 1 to 9 from each player's own right. The notation guide explains both systems.
Fortress守和局面: A fortress is a defensive set-up that the attacking side cannot break, so the game is drawn. Because a player with no legal move loses in xiangqi, most book draws are fortresses. A horse and two elephants, for example, can draw against a chariot, but only from one particular fortress.
General (shuai/jiang)帥 / 將: The general moves and captures one point along a file or rank and may not leave the palace, where it starts in the middle of the back rank. You win by checkmating the opposing general or by leaving your opponent with no legal move. Red's general carries the character 帥 and Black's carries 將.
Corner-hanging horse (guajiaoma)挂角马: The corner-hanging horse is a mate in which a horse gives check from one of the two corners of the opponent's palace nearest the river, d7 or f7 when Red attacks. The horse needs help to mate: on the board in the checkmate patterns guide, the general's own advisors fill d9 and f9, and Red's soldier covers e8.
Palace-corner cannon (guogongpao)过宫炮: The palace-corner cannon is Red's opening in which a cannon crosses in front of the palace to the advisor's file on the far side, h2d2 in the model line. Moving either cannon to the d-file or the f-file is one of Red's common first moves.
Scooping the moon from the sea (haidi laoyue)海底捞月: Scooping the moon from the sea is a mate in which pieces reach the opponent's back rank and attack the general from behind. In the checkmate patterns guide, the general has left its back rank, and a chariot slides along that rank to the point behind it.
The river (Chu-Han boundary)楚河汉界: The river is the space between rank 4 and rank 5 that divides the board into Red's half and Black's half. It usually carries the words 楚河 (chuhe), the river of the Chu, and 汉界 (hanjie), the border of the Han, which recall the war between Chu and Han. It changes the rules for only two pieces: soldiers gain a sideways move after crossing it, and elephants may not cross it.
Horse (ma)傌 / 馬: The horse moves one point along a file or rank, then one point diagonally outward. It cannot jump, so a piece of either colour on the first point of its path, the horse's leg, blocks the move in that direction. Red's horses carry the character 傌 and Black's carry 馬.
Horse's leg马腿: The horse's leg is the point next to a horse, along a file or rank, in the direction it wants to move. If a piece of either colour stands there, the horse cannot go that way, and putting a piece there is called blocking the horse's leg (蹩马腿, bie matui). The piece values guide shows a blocked horse on a board.
Initiative (xianshou)先手: You have the initiative when your opponent has to keep answering your threats, so you decide the course of the game. Strong players value it highly and often give up a soldier for it in the opening or the middlegame. The Chinese term also means the first move, which Red makes.
Staggered chariots (shuangchecuo)双车错: In the staggered chariots, two chariots on different lines take turns to check a general that has no other pieces protecting it. In the checkmate patterns guide, one chariot checks along rank 8, the general steps back to the back rank, and the other chariot mates along it.
Kill / mating attack (sha)杀: A kill is a mating attack: a move or a series of moves that forces checkmate. The Chinese name for a mating pattern, 杀法 (shafa), means a way to kill, and the checkmate patterns guide teaches twelve of them.
Two-headed snake (liangtoushe)两头蛇: The two-headed snake is Red's formation with both the third-file and the seventh-file soldiers advanced, c3c4 and g3g4 in the model line. A soldier is often pushed so that it stops blocking its own horse, and this formation does that on both wings.
Opposite-direction cannons (liepao)列炮: In the opposite-direction cannons, Black answers the central cannon with a central cannon of its own, brought from the other side of the board. In the model line Red plays h2e2 and Black plays b7e7, so the two cannons reach the centre from opposite sides.
Cannon behind the horse (mahoupao)马后炮: The cannon behind the horse is a mate in which a horse stands on the general's file, two points in front of it, and a cannon checks from behind with the horse as its screen. The horse also covers points beside the general, so the two pieces mate together.
Smothered palace (mengong)闷宫: The smothered palace is a mate by a single cannon against a general on its starting point, boxed in by its own advisors on the back rank and in the centre of the palace. The checkmate patterns guide shows the cannon checking along the back rank, with the advisor beside the general as its screen.
Middlegame (zhongju)中局: The middlegame is the phase between the opening and the endgame. One of its main themes is holding and attacking the centre file, and because that file is often well defended, players also look for attacks on the wings.
Opening (buju)布局: The opening is the first phase of the game, generally the first ten-odd moves, in which both sides bring their main pieces into play and set up for attack or defence. The site's twenty opening guides and the opening principles guide cover it.
Palace (jiugong)九宫: The palace is the area of three files by three ranks at each end of the board, marked with two diagonal lines. Red's palace covers files d to f on ranks 0 to 2, and Black's covers the same files on ranks 7 to 9. The general and the advisors may never leave their own palace.
Perpetual check ban长将禁着: If you give perpetual check, with one piece or with several, you lose the game. Perpetually chasing an unprotected piece is also forbidden, with exceptions for the general and the soldiers, although each set of rules draws its own limits on what counts as perpetual.
Pin / fix (qianzhi)牵制: A piece is pinned when moving it would expose a more important piece to capture. Every piece except the soldier and the advisor can pin: a cannon can pin two pieces at once on one line, and a general can pin through the facing generals rule. In the iron bolt, the central cannon pins an advisor so that it cannot capture the checking piece.
Screen horses (pingfengma)屏风马: In the screen horses defence, Black answers the central cannon by bringing out both horses to guard the centre soldier, to g7 and c7 in the model line. It is the most common way to continue after the central cannon and Black's first horse move.
Point交叉点: A point is a place where two lines of the board cross, and the pieces stand on the points. The board has nine files and ten ranks, so it has ninety points.
Rank行 / 横线: A rank is one of the ten horizontal lines of the board. Xiangqi Arena numbers the ranks 0 to 9 from Red's back rank, so Red's general starts on e0 and Black's on e9.
Rating (Elo)等级分: A rating is a number that estimates your strength from the results of your rated games. Xiangqi Arena uses the Elo system, and your rating places you in a rank tier from Silver to Diamond.
Three-step tiger (sanbuhu)三步虎: The three-step tiger brings a chariot into play in three moves: the horse comes out, the cannon moves to the edge file, and the chariot takes the file the cannon has left. In the model line Red plays h0g2, h2i2 and i0h0.
Screen (paojia)炮架: The screen is the one piece, of either colour, that a cannon jumps over when it captures. Any number of empty points may lie between the cannon, the screen and the captured piece, but a cannon with no screen on a line cannot capture along it.
Advisor-corner cannon (shijiaopao)士角炮: The advisor-corner cannon is Red's opening in which a cannon moves to the advisor's file on its own wing, h2f2 in the model line. The palace-corner cannon ends on the same file, but it uses the other cannon, which crosses in front of the palace.
Same-direction cannons (shunpao)顺炮: In the same-direction cannons, Black answers the central cannon with a central cannon from the same side of the board. In the model line Red plays h2e2 and Black plays h7e7, so both cannons start on the h-file and move towards the centre in the same direction.
Book / theory棋谱: Book, or theory, is the body of known moves and results that players have recorded in manuals and game collections. An ending whose result theory has settled is a book win or a book draw. The central cannon openings are generally more bound by theory than Red's other common first moves.
Tempo (xian)先: A tempo is one move, counted as a unit of time. In the opening, avoid moving one piece several times or spending moves to win soldiers: both cost tempi and slow down the development of your other pieces.
Heaven-and-earth cannons (tiandipao)天地炮: In the heaven-and-earth cannons, a central cannon, called the heaven cannon, works with a cannon on the opponent's back rank, called the earth cannon. The two cannons can use the opponent's advisors and elephants as screens, and other pieces, most commonly a chariot, help them mate.
Iron bolt (tiemenshuan)铁门栓: In the iron bolt, a central cannon holds the centre file while a chariot or a soldier gives check from the point beside the general where an advisor starts. The cannon pins the defending advisor so that it cannot capture the checking piece, which another piece or its own general protects.
Trench horse (wocaoma)卧槽马: The trench horse is a horse on the opponent's second rank, on the third or seventh file: c8 or g8 when Red attacks, in front of an elephant's starting point. With other pieces it can build a mating attack, and early in the game it can also check and win a chariot that has not yet moved.
Blunder (louzhao)漏着: A blunder is a move that gives your opponent a reply that wins material or the game. In annotated games, a bad move is marked with a question mark and a very bad one with two.
White-face general (bailianjiang)白脸将: The white-face general, also called 对面笑 (duimianxiao), is a mate built on the rule that the two generals may not face each other. One general takes an open file away from the other, so that another piece can give mate, as a soldier does in the checkmate patterns guide.
Five-seven cannons (wuqipao)五七炮: In the five-seven cannons, Red has one cannon on the centre file, the fifth, and the other on the seventh file, which is the c-file. In the model line the formation comes from the central cannon against the screen horses defence.
Five-six cannons (wuliupao)五六炮: In the five-six cannons, Red has one cannon on the centre file, the fifth, and the other on the sixth file, which is the d-file. Like the five-seven cannons, it comes from the central cannon against the screen horses in the model line.
Pointing finger (xianren zhilu)仙人指路: The pointing finger is Red's opening in which a soldier on the third or seventh file advances on the first move, for example g3g4. Its Chinese name means "the immortal points the way", and the site's guide to it is called The Pointing Finger.
River-patrol cannon (xunhepao)巡河炮: A river-patrol cannon is a cannon placed on its own side's river bank, which is rank 4 for Red. The River-Patrol Cannon guide shows it working with Red's central cannon.
Kill exercise (shaju)杀局: A kill exercise is a position, composed or taken from a game, in which one side has a forced mate to find. The Learn section of Xiangqi Arena groups its puzzles by the same mating patterns that the checkmate patterns guide teaches, so you can read about a mate and then practise it.

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