What Are They Talking About? Commonly Used Fishing Terms And What They Mean.

When you watch your favorite fishing programs you will often hear them use terms such as structure, cover, rip-rap, eddy, and many more and might not know what they mean.  In this post I am going to list some common fishing terms and what they mean so the next time your watching your favorite show you will know exactly what they are talking about.


Action: This refers to the how much of the rod flexes when the tip of the rod is bent and how fast the rod snaps back when the pressure is released (Slow, Medium, and Fast).

Burnin':  Quickly reeling in your fishing lure.

Brackish: Water of intermediate salinity between seawater and freshwater.

Cover: Cover is anything in the water that a fish can use to hide itself with.  This can be man made or natural. (trees, logs, docks, weeds, stumps, bridge pilings, etc.) Many people confuse this with structure.

Crankbait: A lipped or lipless lure that dives under the water when it is being reeled in.

Drag: The setting on a fishing reel that allows line to be pulled from the reel when a fish is applying pressure.  This setting helps to keep line from breaking when set correctly.

Eddy:  A swirling of water and reversing of current when the flowing water hits an obstacle such as rocks.

Fan Casting:  Making casts close together in a half circle around the area you are fishing.

Eddy:  A swirling of water and reversing of current when the flowing water hits an obstacle such as rocks.

Flat:  An area of water with almost no change in depth often next to an area with deeper water on one side.

Laydown:  A tree that has fallen into the water.

Oxbow:  A bend in a river that is u shaped.

Pegging:  Breaking off the tip of a toothpick in the hole of a slip sinker to keep it from moving on the line.

Riprap:  A line of rocks or other material that is man-made and often extends above and below the shoreline.

Structure:  Natural changes in the shape on the bottoms of lakes and rivers (ledges, drop-offs).

Suspended: Fish that are at depths not close to the surface and not on the bottom.

I hope this list helps you understand a little more about what exactly they are talking about when your watching your favorite fishing shows.  Let me know what you think about the list and what other terms you would add. 

Want to learn to use a bait casting reel check out this post: Bait Cast Reels Trial, Error and Finally Success.