Donk

Also known as: donkey, donk off

Pejorative for a bad player; also short for the donk bet — leading into the previous street's aggressor.

"Donk" has two related table meanings. As an insult it's a weak player who spews chips — close to fish but more derisive, often used after someone makes an obviously bad play ("what a donk call"). "Donking off" a stack means losing it through reckless aggression or curiosity calls.

The term also names a specific action — the donk bet — where the out-of-position player leads into the player who took the betting lead on the prior street, instead of checking to them. It got its name because, for years, leading into the preflop raiser was considered a beginner move; solvers have since shown donk bets are correct on select textures (boards that shift equity toward the caller's range), so the action itself isn't inherently bad — only the indiscriminate version is.

At the table, judge the bet, not the label: a leading bet on a board that genuinely favours the OOP range is theory-approved, while leading every flop with no plan is the kind of play that earns the other meaning of the word.