MANILA, Philippines – Many are expected to watch the highly-anticipated battle of today’s legendary boxers Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr.

But not all viewers may fully understand media’s coverage of the fight – or any boxing match, for that matter, because of unfamiliar and foreign-sounding terms and jargon.

What do they mean? We simplify and define them in this boxing-tionary.

ON THE GAME:

Bout – an alternative term for a boxing match

Card – the record of fights happening in a single boxing event

Dive – when a fighter loses intentionally

Roughhousing – when an opponent fights in an overly physical and unruly way

Undercard – a series of fights before the main event

ON THE PLAYERS AND THEIR TEAM:

Bleeder – a boxer who easily has cuts

Shopworn – a boxer who slows down after a long career

Brawler – a boxer who fights aggressively

Chief Second – the head trainer in a fighter’s corner

Corner men – members of the fighter’s camps who stay in one corner of the ring during a fight

Cutman – among the corner men who is responsible for tending to swelling and cuts

On the Ropes – a term used to describe a fighter in a dangerous situation of having his back trapped against the ropes in a boxing ring

Palooka – an aging, losing, or uncelebrated boxer

ON ATTACKS/TECHNIQUES:

Clinch – when both fighters hold each other

Combination – consecutive punches landed in sequence

Counterpunch – a response punch to an opponent’s attack

Covering up – a defensive tactic wherein a fighter covers himself to stop his opponent’s offensive

Cross – a kind of power punch thrown straight with the rear hand, or the dominant hand often used by a fighter

Feint – an attack strategy wherein a fighter acts like he’s going to punch but does not, just to get his opponent to react

Get fff – the ability of a fighter to get his offense untracked

Go to the body – a strategy wherein one tries to deplete an opponent’s resolve by continually punching only to the body

Haymaker – a wild punch intended to knock out the opponent

Kidney punch – a prohibited body punch thrown to the rear area of an opponent’s body

Liver shot – a legal punch wherein a left hook connects with the lower right side of an opponent’s body

Low blow – a punch below the legal level deemed by the referee

Rabbit punch – an illegal hit to the back of the head

Sucker punch – a punch thrown in a distracted or unprepared opponent

Paw – to gently poke a jab out

ON RESULTS/ DECISIONS:

Break – the moment when the referee separates the fighters from a clinch

Dive – when a fighter loses intentionally

Draw – when both fighters earn the same scores

Eight count – conducted by a referee after a fighter is knocked down, the referee must complete a count of 8 even if the foe rises before the 8th count

Flash knockdown – a result of surprise or chance, rather than being seriously hurt because of a knock out

Majority decision – when two judges agree a certain fighter won, while the third judge scores it as a draw; example: 115-113, 115-113, 112-112.

Majority draw – when two judges vote for a draw, while the third judge chooses a winner; example: 114-114, 114-114, 116-114.

Split Draw – when two judges disagree on who won a fight, while the third judge has it as a draw

Technical decision – when a match was stopped because of a cut, or some other circumstance, sending the fight to the scorecards

Technical draw – when a game ends prematurely and the scoring is even

Technical knockout – when a fighter commits too much punishment and the referee stops the fight without completing a 10-count

Throw in the towel – when the head trainer throws a towel inside the ring because he wants to stop the fight; but still, only the referee can make a decision

For more boxing terminologies and other information, as well as details on the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight, read: Mayweather vs Pacquiao 101: What you need to know. – Rappler.com

SOURCE: predictem.com, ringsidebygus.com, various news reports

Abigail Abigan is a Rappler intern.