/glossary

v48.4.0

Italian Card Games Glossary

Terms and concepts from Briscola, Scopa, and the Neapolitan deck — everything you need to understand (and win) classic Italian card games.

Games

Briscola
Classic Italian trick-taking card game for 2 to 4 players, and the name of the trump suit chosen each hand.
briscola
Scopa
Classic Italian card game where players capture cards from the table, and the name of the scoring move that clears the table in a single play.
scopa

Variants

Scopone
A 4-player partnership variant of Scopa where all cards are dealt at the start and no cards are placed on the table.
scopa
Briscola in Cinque
A 5-player team variant of Briscola where one player secretly calls a card — whoever holds that card becomes their secret partner.
briscola

Scoring

Primiera
A Scopa scoring category: 1 point for the player who holds the best single card from each of the four suits.
scopa
Napoletane
A Scopa bonus: 1 point if you capture the Ace, 2, and 3 of Coins in the same hand.
scopa
Carte
A Scopa scoring category: 1 point for the player who captures the most cards total.
scopa

Deck & Cards

Mazzo Napoletano
The traditional 40-card Neapolitan deck used in Briscola, Scopa, and most classic Italian card games.
briscolascopa

Suits

Bastoni
The suit of Batons or Clubs in the Italian Neapolitan deck — one of the four suits used in Briscola and Scopa.
briscolascopa
Coppe
The suit of Cups in the Italian Neapolitan deck — one of the four suits used in Briscola and Scopa.
briscolascopa
Denari
The suit of Coins in the Italian Neapolitan deck — the most strategically important suit in Scopa.
briscolascopa
Spade
The suit of Swords in the Italian Neapolitan deck — one of the four suits used in Briscola and Scopa.
briscolascopa

Notable Cards

Settebello
The 7 of Coins — the single most famous card in Italian card games, automatically worth 1 point in Scopa.
scopa
Asso
The Ace — the single most valuable card in Briscola, worth 11 points.
briscolascopa

Gameplay

Presa
A capture — the act of taking one or more cards from the table or winning a trick.
briscolascopa