to play poker / to bluff
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to play poker
To play the card game poker, in which players bet on the strength of their own hand in order to win a shared pot.
Jeden zweiten Freitag treffen wir uns mit Freunden, um die ganze Nacht zu pokern.
Every other Friday, we meet up with friends to play poker all night.
The verb 'pokern' (to play poker) is derived directly from the name of the card game 'Poker'. With the ending '-n', it is conjugated like a regular German verb.
Am Wochenende pokern wir oft mit Freunden.
On weekends, we often play poker with friends.
You can recognize the literal meaning (the card game) from contexts involving games, leisure, or cards. The figurative meaning (to bluff, to take risks) appears in contexts such as business, politics, or negotiations.
Wir haben die ganze Nacht Karten gespielt und gepokert.
We played cards and poker all night.
If you want to express what is being played for, use the preposition 'um' followed by the accusative.
Die Freunde saßen am Tisch und pokerten um kleine Geldbeträge.
The friends sat at the table and played poker for small amounts of money.
In the figurative meaning, 'pokern' (to bluff / take risks) is often combined with the adverb 'hoch' (high). 'Hoch pokern' means to take a big risk in order to achieve a high goal.
Der Manager pokerte hoch, als er die riskante Investition tätigte.
The manager took a big gamble when he made the risky investment.
to play
'spielen' and 'pokern' can be confused because poker is a game. But 'spielen' is much more general and can also mean gambling. 'pokern' means the card game poker specifically. In addition, 'pokern' can figuratively mean that someone takes a risk and bluffs in an uncertain situation, for example in negotiations. So you can 'Poker spielen' (play poker) or simply 'pokern' (play poker / bluff). But not every kind of 'spielen' is 'pokern'.
Bei der Verhandlung pokert Herr Hoffmann hoch und nennt zuerst einen sehr hohen Preis.
In the negotiation, Mr. Hoffmann plays a high-stakes game and starts by naming a very high price.
Im Casino spielt Tom nur mit einem kleinen Einsatz.
In the casino, Tom only gambles with a small stake.