Editing Card sharp (section)

{{Short description|Person who uses skill and deception to win at poker or other card games}}
{{Redirect|Card shark|other uses|Card Shark (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi) - The Cardsharps - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|''[[The Cardsharps]]'' (ca. 1594) by [[Caravaggio]] ]]
[[File:Falschspieler.jpg|thumb|''{{Interlanguage link multi|Le Tricheur à l'as de carreau|fr}}'' (1635) by [[Georges de La Tour]] ]]
A '''card sharp''' (also '''card shark''', sometimes hyphenated or spelled as a single word) is a person who uses skill or deception to win at [[card game]]s (such as [[poker]]). "Sharp" and "shark" spellings have varied over time and by region.

The label is not always intended as pejorative, and is sometimes used to refer to practitioners of [[Card manipulation|card tricks]] for entertainment purposes. In general usage, principally in [[American English]] and more commonly with the "shark" spelling, the term has also taken on the meaning of an expert card gambler who takes advantage of less-skilled players, also called an "[[advantage player]]", without any implication of actual [[Cheating in poker| cheating at cards]], in much the same way that "{{Cuegloss|Shark|pool shark}}" or [[Hustling |"pool hustler"]] can (especially when used by non-players) be intended to refer to a skilled player rather than a cheater or swindler. The synonym to "card sharp", "'''{{linktext|blackleg}}'''", when used with reference to card-playing and swindlers, has pejorative connotations.<ref>{{oed | blackleg}}</ref>

A card sharp or shark (by either of the gambling-related definitions) may be a "[[Glossary of poker terms#rounder|rounder]]" who travels, seeking out high-stakes games in which to gamble.