Reference
Climbing Glossary
Every sport has its own language, and climbing has more than most. Here is a plain English glossary of the terms and slang you will hear at the gym and the crag, from A to Z.
A
- Anchor
- The fixed point at the top of a route, built from bolts or gear, that the rope runs through or clips into.
- Approach
- The walk from the car or trailhead to the base of the climb.
- Arete
- An outward facing edge or corner of rock, climbed on its prow.
B
- Belay
- Managing the rope so that a fall is caught safely. The person doing it is the belayer. How to belay →
- Beta
- Information about how to climb something, such as which holds to use and in what order.
- Bolt
- A permanent metal anchor fixed into the rock that a climber clips the rope into on sport routes.
- Bouldering
- Climbing short, powerful problems close to the ground without a rope, protected by pads. Bouldering for beginners →
C
- Crag
- An outdoor climbing area or cliff.
- Crimp
- A small edge held with just the fingertips.
- Crux
- The hardest single section of a climb.
D
- Deadpoint
- A controlled dynamic move that reaches a hold at the highest, almost weightless point of the motion.
- Dyno
- A dynamic move where you jump from one hold to another, sometimes leaving the wall entirely.
E
- Edging
- Standing on a small foothold using the edge of the shoe rather than the toe.
F
- Flag
- Extending a leg to one side for balance, without using it on a hold.
- Flash
- Climbing a route cleanly on the first try, using beta from watching or being told.
- Font scale
- The bouldering grade scale used across Europe, running 4, 5, 6A, 6B and up. How grades work →
- Free solo
- Climbing with no rope and no protection, where a fall would be serious or fatal. Types of climbing →
G
- Gaston
- A hold pulled sideways with the elbow out, as if opening a pair of sliding doors.
H
- Heel hook
- Using the heel on a hold to pull or balance, often on steep terrain.
- Highball
- A tall boulder problem where a fall from the top would be dangerous.
- Hold
- Anything on the wall you grip with your hands or stand on with your feet.
I
- Incut
- A hold that curves inward, so it is easy and secure to grip.
J
- Jug
- A big, friendly hold you can wrap your whole hand around.
K
- Knee bar
- Wedging a leg between two holds or features to take weight off the arms, sometimes for a hands free rest.
L
- Lead
- Climbing while trailing the rope and clipping it into protection as you go, rather than having it fixed from above. Types of climbing →
M
- Mantle
- Pushing down on a hold to get your body up over it, like climbing out of a pool.
- Multi pitch
- A long route split into several rope lengths, or pitches, climbed one after another.
N
- Nut
- A metal wedge slotted into a crack as removable traditional protection. Also called a wire or a chock.
O
- Onsight
- Climbing a route cleanly on the first try with no prior information.
- Overhang
- Rock that leans out past vertical, making it steeper and harder.
P
- Pinch
- A hold squeezed between the thumb and the fingers.
- Pitch
- A single rope length of climbing between two anchors.
- A hold with a hole for one, two or three fingers.
- Problem
- A bouldering route.
- Project
- A climb you work on over many sessions before you send it.
- Pump
- The burning, tired feeling in the forearms when they fill with blood.
Q
R
- Rappel
- Descending a rope in a controlled way using a friction device. Also called abseiling.
- Redpoint
- Climbing a route cleanly after having practised it before.
- Route
- A roped climb from the bottom up to an anchor.
S
- Send
- To climb a route or problem cleanly from bottom to top without falling.
- Slab
- A wall that leans back from vertical, climbed with balance and footwork.
- Sloper
- A rounded hold with no clear edge, held by friction and open hands.
- Smear
- Standing on the rock with the sole of the shoe where there is no distinct foothold, using friction.
- Sport climbing
- Roped climbing where you clip the rope into bolts that are already fixed to the rock. Types of climbing →
- Spot
- Guiding a falling boulderer toward the pad and protecting their head and back.
T
- Toe hook
- Hooking the top of the toes on a hold to hold body tension, usually on steep rock.
- Top rope
- Climbing with the rope already running through an anchor above you, so a slip is caught almost immediately. Types of climbing →
- Topo
- A diagram or map of a route or crag showing the lines and features.
- Trad
- Traditional climbing, where you place your own protection into the rock as you go and remove it afterward. Types of climbing →
U
- Undercling
- A hold gripped from underneath, palm up.
V
- V-scale
- The bouldering grade scale used mainly in North America, running V0, V1, V2 and up. How grades work →
W
- Whipper
- A big, dramatic fall on a lead rope.
X
- X rating
- A protection rating for a route with little or no gear, where a long fall could be fatal.
Y
- YDS
- The Yosemite Decimal System, the roped grade scale used in the United States, such as 5.10 and 5.12. How grades work →
Z
- Z-clip
- A lead clipping mistake where you pull the rope up through a lower quickdraw, creating a Z and adding dangerous slack.
New to the sport? Start with our guide to bouldering for beginners, convert grades with the grade converter, and get the best sends every week with the Climbers Delight newsletter.