Advantage
A near-score, given when someone almost completes a position or submission.
Why it matters. It breaks ties when points are level.
For beginners
BJJ words, explained simply
Heard a word in class and nodded along? Look it up here. Every term comes with a plain explanation and why it matters on the mat.
59 of 59 terms
Americana
A figure-four shoulder lock turning the arm the other way from the kimura, usually from top.
Why it matters. It's often one of the first submissions taught from side control and mount.
Arm triangle
A choke using your opponent's own arm and shoulder against their neck.
Why it matters. A strong finish from mount and side control.
Armbar
Straightening your opponent's arm across your hips until they tap.
Why it matters. A classic from guard and mount, and often one of the first submissions taught.
Back control
Behind your opponent with your hooks in.
Why it matters. Often called the strongest position. It scores 4 points.
Base
Your balance and connection to the ground.
Why it matters. Good base makes you hard to sweep or move.
Belt
Your rank. Adults go white, blue, purple, brown, black. Kids have their own colours.
Why it matters. A belt is a coach's judgement of you as a person and a grappler, given in person, never by a checklist.
Breakfall
Falling safely: slapping the mat and tucking your chin.
Why it matters. It's the first thing you learn, because it keeps you safe from day one.
Bridge
Driving your hips high off the mat through your feet. Also called upa.
Why it matters. It's how you escape mount and knock someone off balance.
Butterfly guard
Seated guard with your feet hooked inside your opponent's thighs.
Why it matters. Those hooks let you lift and sweep someone bigger.
Closed guard
Guard with your ankles locked behind your opponent's back.
Why it matters. It's safe and controlled, and full of sweeps and submissions.
Collar choke
Any choke using the gi collar. The cross collar choke is the classic one.
Why it matters. It's a reason the gi feels so different from no-gi.
Crossface
Your shoulder driven across your opponent's face to turn their head away.
Why it matters. Where the head goes, the body follows, so it flattens people.
De La Riva guard
An open guard with one leg hooked around the outside of your opponent's leg, named after Grandmaster Ricardo de la Riva.
Why it matters. Knots & Collar is in the De La Riva lineage, through Professor Waqar Ahmad.
Drill
Repeating a technique with a cooperative partner until it feels natural.
Why it matters. Drilling builds the movement so it shows up when a roll gets messy.
Escape
Getting out of a bad position, usually back to guard or your feet.
Why it matters. Escapes are the foundation. Beginners learn them before submissions.
Essentials 1.0
The Knots & Collar weekend class for your first weeks: Saturday No-Gi, Sunday Gi.
Why it matters. It's the gentlest place to start if you've never trained.
Essentials 2.0
The weekend class that follows Essentials 1.0 and builds on its basics.
Why it matters. It's the bridge from beginner classes into the regular timetable.
Ezekiel choke
A choke using your own sleeve or wrist across the neck, workable even from inside someone's guard.
Why it matters. At Knots & Collar it's taught from mount and quarter mount.
Frame
Bones, not muscles, braced against your opponent to hold space.
Why it matters. Frames let a smaller person stop pressure without tiring out.
Gi
The heavy cotton jacket and trousers worn in traditional jiu-jitsu. At Knots & Collar it's a white gi on the mat.
Why it matters. The collar and sleeves become handles, so the gi changes which grips and chokes you can use.
Guard
You're on your back with your legs between you and your opponent.
Why it matters. Your legs become a shield and a weapon. It's what lets a smaller person fight safely from the bottom.
Guard pull
Sitting down to your guard from standing instead of taking someone down.
Why it matters. It's a common way to start in competition, but in self-defence you'd rather stay standing.
Half guard
You hold one of your opponent's legs between yours.
Why it matters. It's where many passes land, and a position of its own to survive and attack from.
Hooks
Your feet hooked inside your opponent's thighs, usually from the back.
Why it matters. They keep you attached and stop them turning around.
Kimura
A shoulder lock with a figure-four grip on your opponent's arm, turning it behind their back.
Why it matters. It works from almost anywhere and doubles as a control grip.
Kindness Over Toughness
The Knots & Collar philosophy: train hard, look after your partner first.
Why it matters. You only improve if your partners stay healthy and want to train with you again.
Knee on belly
On top with one knee pinning your opponent's stomach.
Why it matters. It's mobile and uncomfortable for them, and scores 2 points.
Mount
Sitting on your opponent's chest or stomach, knees on the mat.
Why it matters. One of the strongest positions. It scores 4 points in competition.
No-Gi
Jiu-jitsu trained in a rashguard and shorts or spats instead of a gi.
Why it matters. With no cloth to grab, it's faster and closer to wrestling. Most students train both.
Oss
A word used in many academies as hello, thank you or "understood".
Why it matters. It's a small sign of respect to your partner and coach.
Overhook
Your arm wrapped over your opponent's arm, trapping it.
Why it matters. It's used to defend underhooks and to set up throws and submissions.
Pass
Getting past your opponent's legs to pin them.
Why it matters. Legs are the main defence, so passing them is how the top player progresses. It scores 3 points.
Points
How a match is scored: takedown or sweep 2, knee on belly 2, pass 3, mount or back 4.
Why it matters. Points reward positions, not just submissions, which is why position comes first.
Position Roadmap
The Knots & Collar way of teaching each position in four stages: survival, escapes, transitions and submissions.
Why it matters. It tells you what to work on next in any position.
Positional sparring
Live training that starts in one position with one goal, like escaping mount.
Why it matters. It gives you lots of reps of the exact situation you're learning.
Posture
Keeping your back straight and head up, especially inside someone's guard.
Why it matters. Broken posture is where most attacks begin.
Quarter mount
Nearly in mount, with one of your knees still trapped by their legs.
Why it matters. Passes often stall here. Knowing it gets you to full mount.
Rashguard
A tight, stretchy training top. Full sleeves are worn on the mat at Knots & Collar.
Why it matters. It keeps training hygienic and protects your skin from mat burn.
Rear naked choke
A choke from the back, your arm around the neck.
Why it matters. It's the most reliable finish from back control.
Roll
Live sparring: trying your jiu-jitsu against a partner who's trying too.
Why it matters. It's where technique becomes yours. Agree the pace with your partner before you start.
Rolling class
A session on the timetable that is mostly live rolling rather than new technique.
Why it matters. It's the time to test what you learned in class.
Seatbelt
One arm over a shoulder and one under the other armpit, hands locked across their chest.
Why it matters. It's the main grip for controlling the back.
Shrimp
Sliding your hips away on your side to make space. Also called a hip escape.
Why it matters. Probably the most important movement in jiu-jitsu. You'll do it every warm-up.
Side control
Lying chest to chest across your opponent, beside their body.
Why it matters. A heavy, stable top position you reach after passing the guard.
Spats
Tight training leggings, black and ankle-length at Knots & Collar.
Why it matters. They protect your knees and legs and keep no-gi training clean.
Sprawl
Throwing your legs back and your hips down to stop a takedown.
Why it matters. It's the main takedown defence, and at Knots & Collar it chains into mount.
Stripe
A strip of tape on your belt marking progress between belts.
Why it matters. Most belts carry up to four stripes before the next colour.
Submission
A hold that makes your partner tap: a choke or a joint lock.
Why it matters. It ends the match, but it only works after you have control.
Survival
The first stage in a bad position: stay safe, stay calm, don't give anything away.
Why it matters. You can't escape a position you haven't survived first.
Sweep
Going from bottom in guard to the top position.
Why it matters. It turns defence into offence and scores 2 points.
Takedown
Bringing a standing opponent to the ground, landing on top.
Why it matters. Every self-defence situation starts standing. It scores 2 points.
Tap
Tapping your partner or the mat, or saying "tap", to stop instantly. It means "I give up, let go".
Why it matters. It's the safety rule that lets everyone train for real. Tap early, tap often, and always let go when your partner taps.
Technical stand-up
Getting up from the ground safely, keeping a hand and foot posted.
Why it matters. It's essential self-defence: get up without exposing your head.
Transition
Moving from one position to a better one: a sweep, a pass, a take to the back.
Why it matters. Good jiu-jitsu is mostly transitions done at the right moment.
Triangle
A choke made by wrapping your legs around your opponent's neck and one arm.
Why it matters. A signature move for smaller players from guard.
Turtle
On your knees and elbows, curled up to protect yourself.
Why it matters. It's a quick escape route, but leave it fast, because the back is exposed.
Underhook
Your arm under your opponent's armpit, hand on their back.
Why it matters. Winning the underhook usually means winning the position.
X-guard
A guard where your legs make an X around one of your opponent's legs.
Why it matters. It puts them off balance and sets up sweeps.
Ready to learn these on the mat?
Your first class is free, and beginners start every week.