Note 8/7/22: I have received inquires on what something like “0-1” means. Here is a quick breakdown: “1-0” (White wins), “0-1” (Black wins), and “1/2-1/2” (Draw). Sometimes these are written in the middle of the notation. This is to indicate the point where one player resigned.
So you want to learn how to read the chess jargon in the newspaper? You are likely here because you want to learn chess notation. Specifically, chess moves are written using algebraic notation. This notation gives critical information that the reader can use to replay games, namely: (1) The piece moving, (2) What it’s doing, and (3) Where it’s going. Squares on the board are identified using a coordinate grid, often labelled on boards and diagrams, with files a-h and ranks 1-8.
Above is an example game score showing how chess notation is written in tournament play. Click on the picture to zoom in.
- Here’s another example: Ngf6
- Read “knight g to f6” this specifies the knight on the g-file goes to f6.
Here’s a more detailed description…
If you want to learn chess notation completely, you will need a more thorough explanation, which follows. For each move, the following are written in order:
1. The piece moving: K for king; Q, queen; R, rook; B, bishop; N, knight. No letter is written for a pawn.
2. Only if more than one piece of the same kind can reach a square: the differing file or rank of the piece’s original square (preference given to differing file). An example is Ngf6, shown above. In very rare cases, both the differing file and rank must be written.
3. Only if the move is a capture: an x is added. With pawn captures, the original file of the pawn precedes the x (e.g. exf4).
4. The piece’s destination square, file then rank (e.g. e4, see diagram above).
5. Conditional: Castling is written two ways: O-O (kingside castle) and O-O-O (queenside castle). If the move is a promotion, an = sign follows with the letter of the piece promotion following (e.g. e8=Q). If the move is check, a + is added at the very end; if checkmate, #.
6. Commentary: After 1-5 are written, specific symbols are optionally used for commentary:
! good move, surprising move.
!! very good move, very surprising move.
? questionable move.
?? blunder.
!? interesting move.
?! interesting but questionable move.
(D) the position after the previous move is featured in the diagram.
= equal.
+= slight advantage to White.
+- significant advantage to White.
=+ slight advantage to Black.
-+ significant advantage to Black.