Wrestling Language

A guide to things you will see and hear around the sport of wrestling.

• ("Let's see some) action!"

Referees will sometimes politely inform a wrestler (or both) that their behavior is getting close to stalling. Before issuing a formal warning, some referees will say this as a polite warning to avoid stalling.

• "Chest on chest!"

Wrestlers who have their opponent on their backs are close to a pin. The maximum leverage that can generally be applied occurs when the wrestler on top pushes down with his chest on to his opponent's chest. A coach yelling "chest on chest" is a reminder to reposition the body to increase pressure on the opponent's body.

• Choice

Before a dual meet begins, while the referee is meeting with the team captains, the referee will flip a colored disc before the match to determine which team has "choice". The team winning the flip will decide whether their team will have choice of position in the second period for the odd or even matches. Because some wrestler wrestle better from a particular position, this can sometimes be important for a team to determine that particular wrestlers get the choice of their starting position. In a tournament, the disc flip occurs just after the first period of each match ends.

• Circle

The circle is the boundary of the match. Wrestlers are supposed to attempt to stay in the middle of the circle, to avoid going out of bounds. Wrestlers who spend too much time near the circle's boundary may be gently warned by the referee to "stay in the circle" and avoid going out of bounds.

• "Free move!"

If a wrestler's opponent is guilty of locking his hands, the referee will signal that the violation has occurred, but will not stop the match, giving the wrestler being controlled a chance to escape or reverse. Coaches will yell "free move" to the wrestler being controlled to tell them that they should do everything they can to escape/reverse, even if it means taking a risk, because the top wrestler will not be permitted to take advantage of any mistakes. The referee will stop the match before the bottom wrestler's situation worsens to award the penalty point.

• "Get your one!"

Coaches will yell this to a wrestler, currently being controlled, to encourage an escape. This might be yelled to a wrestler who is not attempting to escape properly, or to an aggressive wrestler attempting to reverse an opponent unsuccessfully.

• "Get your two!"

You may hear coaches yell this to a wrestler who is in a good position to take down his opponent, but may be thinking about trying a riskier move to get his opponent immediately to his back for near-fall points or a pin. The coach is simply saying "get the two point takedown, and don't risk getting taken down yourself".

• "Half!"

Short for "half nelson"; a standard wrestling move used to turn an opponent onto his back, after he is flat on the mat. This is something a coach will yell to remind his wrestler that he is in good position to use this maneuver.

• "Look up!"

When a wrestler has his opponent in a pinning position, it is natural for the wrestler in control to look down at his opponent's shoulders to see if they are pinned. However, looking up will force the body to arch and apply more pressure to the opponent. Thus, coaches will tell wrestlers to "look up" to remind them that this helps pin an opponent.

• "Look where you are!"

Coaches will often shout this to a wrestler to remind them when they are close to the edge of the circle. The wrestler in control will want to prevent his opponent from going out of bounds.

• "Motion!"

A moving target is a harder target to attack, so a good wrestler should be moving to both hinder his opponent's attack, and to give them a better chance to attack their opponent. If a coach is not happy with the amount of movement the wrestler is displaying, he might shout this as a reminder.

• "On your toes!"

When wrestlers have their opponent on their backs, some are tempted to push down on their opponent while kneeling on their knees. If, however, the wrestler on top balanced on their toes instead of their knees, it would increase the amount of weight that the wrestler on top applies to the wrestler on his back. Coaches yell "on your toes" to advise wrestlers to get off their knees and apply more pressure to their opponents.

• Singlet

The singlet is a wrestler's basic uniform. In addition to the singlet, the wrestler wears special shoes, and headgear to protect the head and ears.

• ("Get in your) stance!"

A proper stance in wrestling assures that a wrestler is balanced (not easily knocked over), and in good position to both attack and defend. Especially if wresters are not focused, they may not realize they are not in a good stance, leaving themselves open to attack. Coaches will yell this as a reminder to maintain a good and proper stance.

• "TWO!!"

When time is about to run out, or the wrestlers are very close to out of bounds, you might hear fans and coaches yell this to the referee in an attempt to sway the referee to award a two point takedown, if it is a close decision as to whether the takedown was completed before time expired or the wresters move out of bounds.

• "Two on one!"

A wrestler can gain physical advantage over an opponent by using two limbs on one of his opponent's limbs. Coaches will yell this in an attempt to remind a wrestler that they are in a position to gain such a strength advantage by using two limbs on one.