Common BJJ Terms and Slang, Explained
Starting Brazilian jiu jitsu means learning two things at once, the techniques themselves, and the vocabulary everyone around you already takes for granted. Positions, submissions, and gym slang all get thrown around constantly from the first class, and having a real reference for what they actually mean makes the first few months considerably less disorienting.
Positions
Guard is the position when you're on your back with your legs wrapped around or engaging your opponent, using your legs to control distance and attack rather than simply being pinned. Closed guard, open guard, and half guard are all variations built around this same basic idea of using the legs as the primary defensive and offensive tool. Mount is the dominant position where you sit on top of an opponent's torso, controlling their hips and setting up submissions from directly above them. Side control puts you chest-to-chest with an opponent but off to their side rather than straddling them, another strong pinning position. Back control means being positioned behind an opponent, typically with hooks (your legs) or a body triangle secured around them, widely considered the single most dominant position in the sport since it exposes the neck while minimizing an opponent's ability to counterattack. Turtle refers to a defensive, curled-up position on hands and knees, usually used to protect the back and neck after a bad scramble.
Submissions
An armbar hyperextends the elbow by isolating and straightening an opponent's arm against your hips. A triangle choke uses the legs, locked around an opponent's neck and one arm, to cut off blood flow rather than the airway itself, which is why it can look gentle right up until it isn't. The rear naked choke is applied from back control, wrapping an arm around the neck to compress the carotid arteries, and is one of the highest-percentage finishes in the sport specifically because escaping back control itself is so difficult. A kimura is a shoulder lock using a figure-four grip on the wrist, and an Americana is a related but mechanically distinct shoulder lock that bends the arm into a right angle rather than rotating it behind the back.
Gym Culture and Slang
The gi is the traditional cotton uniform, and training no-gi means training in a rashguard and shorts instead, which changes which grips and techniques are available. Rolling is the general term for live sparring, applying technique against a resisting partner in something close to real conditions. A flow roll is a lighter, more cooperative version of rolling focused on movement and technique rather than competing for a finish. To tap is to signal submission, physically tapping your partner or the mat, and it's the universal, non-negotiable safety signal in the sport. Stripes mark incremental progress within a belt rank, most commonly up to four before the next belt color, though the IBJJF doesn't formally regulate adult stripe timing the way it does belt-level minimums. Oss is a term borrowed from Japanese martial arts culture, used informally as a greeting or acknowledgment in some gyms, though its use and meaning vary enough between academies that it's worth reading the room before adopting it. A berimbolo is an advanced, inverted transition from guard to back control that requires real technical investment before it's usable live, not a beginner technique despite showing up constantly in highlight clips.
FAQ
What's the difference between a stripe and a belt promotion?
A stripe marks incremental progress within a single belt rank, while a belt promotion is a more significant step reflecting a broader jump in skill, understanding, and instructor confidence, usually taking considerably longer to earn.
Is "rolling" the same thing as sparring in other martial arts?
Functionally yes, rolling is BJJ's term for live sparring against a resisting partner, ranging from lighter flow rolls focused on technique to full-intensity competitive rounds.
Why do some gyms use different slang than others?
BJJ terminology isn't centrally standardized the way belt promotion minimums are for competition; individual gyms and instructor lineages develop their own informal vocabulary over time, which is part of why terms like "oss" carry different weight from one academy to another.
Do I need to know gi-specific terms if I only train no-gi?
Not urgently, but many foundational terms (guard, mount, tap, rolling) apply identically to both formats, and a lot of instruction and match footage still uses gi-based examples even in no-gi-focused gyms.
What's the fastest way to actually learn this vocabulary?
Passive exposure in class works, but it sinks in fastest when a specific term gets connected to something that just happened to you on the mat, hearing "back control" the day you actually get your back taken sticks far better than reading a list in isolation.