Glossary Of Bass Fishing Terms And Expressions

[Phil Lilley]

Backcast — the portion of the casting motion in which the angler brings the rod tip back sharply and just before the power stroke that brings the rod tip forward; the term is most commonly associated with fly fishing

Backlash — an overrun of the spool of a baitcast reel caused by improper spool tension on the part of the angler; sometimes euphemistically referred to as a "professional overrun"

Baitcast reel — a revolving spool fishing reel that is mounted above the rod

Ball-head jig — jig with round (or "ball") head

Bank runner — small bass that are relatively easy to catch and typically spend most of their lives near shore

Bed fishing — the tactic of fishing for bass that are holding on or near spawning beds

Blade — slang term for spinnerbait or blade bait

Blade bait — lure type generally identified by its slim, "blade-like" body and generally made from aluminum and lead

Blowdown — a shoreline tree that has fallen into the water; also known as a "laydown"

Bluff-burning — a technique that involves casting a big-bladed spinnerbait parallel to the edge of a cliff face and retrieving it rapidly just under the surface

Breakline — an area of transition from one depth to another, one cover type to another, one water temperature to another, one water color to another, one substrate to another or any other transition that could influence bass behavior

Bream — one or more of a species of panfish; a commonly used term for bluegill and other panfish

Bronzeback — slang term for smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomeiu)

Brown bass — slang term for smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu)

Brushpile — a man-made collection of brush and woody cover placed in a body of water in order to attract game fish

Bulging — retrieving a lure, usually a spinnerbait, just under the surface so the lure bulges the water without breaking the surface

Bump the stump — technique by which a lure is retrieved in a manner that brings it into contact with another object so that it ricochets off the object, often generating a reaction strike from bass

Buzzbait — a lure with a weighted head, similar to a spinnerbait, and a blade that churns the surface (or "buzzes") as it is retrieved

Buzzing — retrieve for fishing a spinnerbait in which the blades of the lure are bulging the surface of the water

Carolina rig — a rigging technique commonly used with soft plastic lures utilizing a swivel and bead to separate the weight (held on the main line and separated from the lure by a swivel) from the hook (at the end of a leader)

Channel — the main bed in a river or lake originally shaped by natural or man-made forces

Closed-face reel — a fixed spool fishing reel utilizing a conical cover that encloses the spool and helps to control line; commonly used by beginning anglers; also known as a "spincast reel"

Co-angler — An amateur angler who fishes from the back of the professional angler's boat during a tournament

Comeback lure — a lure intended for use immediately after a bass has struck at and missed a different lure; soft plastic baits are common "comeback lures" for anglers who have just missed bass on a spinnerbait or topwater lure

Community hole — a well-known and frequently fished area where numerous angler have had success

Countdown lure — a lure that sinks in the water at a predictable rate

Cover — an object, such as vegetation, a stump or rock, that creates an ambush point for a predator

Crankbait — a lure, most often made of wood or plastic, designed to imitate a swimming baitfish, crawfish or other forage item; diving crankbaits generally float at rest and are characterized by a plastic or metal bill that allows them to be pulled ("dive") under the water on the retrieve; lipless crankbaits typically sink and run deepest on a slow retrieve and shallowest on a fast retrieve

Crashing — casting directly into thick vegetation mats or bushes with a forceful, short cast; typically, a heavy, bullet shaped weight is used to break through the cover and pull a worm or other soft plastic lure into the open water below the canopy

Craw worm — soft plastic bait, one half of which emulates a crawfish and the other half of which emulates the shaft of a plastic worm body

Creature bait — a bulky soft plastic bait with several appendages; most popular for flipping, pitching and Carolina rigging

Darter-head jig — jig with an arrowhead-shaped head

Deadsticking — technique by which a bait is cast and allowed to lie motionless (or with no motion imparted by the angler) for long periods of time

Deep-runner — a crankbait designed to run 10 feet deep or more

Depthfinder — sonar unit used to anglers to locate and identify underwater features, including fish

Depthsounder — sonar unit used to anglers to locate and identify underwater features, including fish

Do Nothing — technique developed by Charlie Brewer using light spinning tackle to swim a small, weighted plastic worm with a steady retrieve

Doodling — a soft plastic bait fishing technique utilizing a basic Texas rig which has been modified by placing a plastic or glass bead between the sinker and the hook and shaking the rod tip during the retrieve to create noise

Downsize — to scale down tackle or lures for a more finesse approach

Drag — a mechanical device built into a reel that, when engaged, exerts an adjustable range of pressure on the spool to permit a controlled release of fishing line from the reel; a properly utilized drag prevents line from breaking or hooks from pulling out when fish are hooked

Drop shotting — a fishing technique whereby a worm hook is attached directly to the line above a sinker; typically, a soft plastic bait is affixed to the hook and the rig is presented more or less vertically

Dropoff — an abrupt change in bottom contour, typically at the juncture of a flat and channel; a ledge

Elite angler — a professional angler in the Bassmaster Elite Series

Epilimnion — the layer of water above the thermocline

Finesse fishing — technique by which small and/or slow moving lures are used to generate feeding strikes from lethargic bass; commonly regarded as the opposite of power fishing

Fishfinder — sonar unit used to anglers to locate and identify underwater features, including fish

Fizzing — the practice of inserting a hypodermic needle through the skin of a bass to release air from the fish's swim bladder; this method is best left to trained personnel to ensure survival of fish caught from deep water; typically, the fish is held underwater during the procedure, and the needle "fizzes" when it enters the swim bladder

Flat — an expanse of bottom with relatively little change in bottom contour or water depth

Flipping (originally "flippin'") — a fixed-line presentation technique invented by Dee Thomas by which a lure (usually a jig or soft plastic bait) is propelled underhand in pendulum fashion to a point a short distance (usually about 15-18 feet) away

Float-and-fly — technique utilizing a long (typically 8 feet and longer) spinning rod, light line, float and small jig to target suspended bass, especially winter smallmouth

Florida rig — soft plastic lure rigged self-weedless with a screw-in style slip sinker

Fly-and-rind — a hair jig with small pork rind trailer

Football jig — jig with football-shaped head; popular for fishing deep water structure and cover, especially rocks

GPS (Global Positioning System) — electronic devices that use transmissions from an array of satellites to aid in navigation and to show precise position, usually on a chart or map

Gamefish — any fish species that is pursued by anglers primarily for sport purposes and not for its value as table fare

Going Ike — screaming and cavorting in reaction to catching or losing a fish ala Michael Iaconelli

Grub — a molded plastic lure normally threaded onto a jighead

Hard bait — any lure made predominantly of hard plastic, wood, composite or other hard materials

Hole jumping — the practice of knowingly fishing a location that was previously discovered to be productive by someone else — usually another competitor in a tournament; it is generally considered to be unethical, though it may not be against any rules

Honey hole — an extremely productive fishing spot

Hook set — the process by which the hook is driven into the mouth of a fish

Hypolimnion — the layer of water below the thermocline

In-line spinner — a straight-shaft lure with one or more spinner blades attached to the fore and a dressed single or treble hook in the rear

Jerkbait — a lipped, minnow shaped plug normally retrieved with a jerking motion of the rod tip

Jig — a weighted head molded around a single, upturned hook with a rubber, silicone or hair skirt affixed to dress the hook

Jig-and-frog — the combination of a jig and pork rind or soft plastic trailer typically used to emulate a crawfish

Jig-and-pig — the combination of a jig and pork rind or soft plastic trailer typically used to emulate a crawfish

Johnboat — typically a flat bottomed aluminum or wood boat with bench-type seating and commonly used to fishing on small bodies of water

Jump fishing — the practice of targeting schooling fish that are obviously feeding on baitfish near the surface

Jumps — a group of bass chasing baitfish to the surface, where they feed in groups; also called "schooling"

Kentucky bass — term commonly used to refer to spotted bass (Micropterus punctulatus)

Kneel and reel — a presentation and retrieve technique in which the angler kneels in the boat and keeps his rod tip under the water while retrieving a deep diving crankbait, thereby getting maximum diving depth from the lure

Laydown — a shoreline tree that has fallen into the water; also known as a "blowdown"

Ledge — an edge of a flat or gently sloping bottom that is cut by any channel or other feature so as to create a sharp dropoff

Levelwind — feature on a baitcast reel that lays the line evenly across the spool as line is being retrieved

Line tie — the portion of a lure where the line is tied onto it

Lipless crankbait — a sinking crankbait that has no diving lip; its depth is controlled by the speed of the retrieve, angle at which the rod is held, line size and other factors

Lipping — landing a bass by grasping its lower lip between the thumb and fingers and pulling it from the water

Livewell — container used to maintain bass or other baitfish or game fish alive, usually by use of an aeration system

Locking through — the process of passing through navigation locks and dams on a body of water

Loop knot — any of several different knots tied with a fixed loop; these knots are often used in lieu of split rings or snaps to give lures more freedom of movement

Mat — vegetation growing from the bottom of a lake or stream that has reached the surface and spread out to create a dense canopy; this cover can provide excellent shelter for bass; mats are typically fished using the pitching and flipping techniques

Match the hatch — mimicking the size and color of insects, baitfish or other prey; a term popularized by fly fishermen targeting trout feeding on insect hatches, but applicable to all types of fishing

Medium runner — a crankbait designed to run 5-10 feet deep

Microjig — any small jig that must be cast with ultralight tackle

Mojo rig — a variation on split shotting utilizing a cylindrical weight held in place on the line by a rubber peg or strands of rubber; a finesse technique typically involving light line and small soft plastic baits

Mossback — a nickname for largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)

Observer — a non-competing individual who accompanies an angler on his boat during competition

Open-face reel — slang term for spinning reel, a fixed spool fishing reel mounted below the rod and commonly used by anglers when fishing light lines or small lures

Paddle-tail — soft plastic design with a large, flat tail resembling a paddle

Pattern — the exact set of water conditions such as depth, cover, structure, temperature, clarity, currents, etc., which attracts fish to a specific location and to other similar locations all over the same body of water; first defined by Roland Martin in 1969

Pattern fishing — the practice of targeting areas which share the exact set of water conditions such as depth, cover, structure, temperature, clarity, currents, etc., which have produced bass at similar locations all over the same body of water

Pegging — affixing a weight to the fishing line so that it cannot slide up or down the line; pegging is typically accomplished with a toothpick, rubber peg or strips of rubber

Pitch-skip — a presentation technique by which a lure is pitched and skips underneath overhanging cover such as a boat dock

Pitching — a underhanded casting method which resembles a modified flipping cast; the bait is swung forward by raising the rod tip, and then allowed to travel forward by free-spooling the line; pitching is most commonly used to present a lure to targets that are just out of range of flipping

Plastic worm — a molded soft plastic lure designed to imitate a worm, eel or snake; plastic worms are manufactured in numerous sizes, shapes and colors

Poking — a technique in which the angler clears a hole in floating vegetation so that he or she can then present a lure through the hole

Postspawn — the period immediately after the spawn when female bass frequently are exhausted from laying eggs and protecting their beds; the period leading into the summer season

Pound-test — the point at which line breaks when pulled with a specific amount of pressure

Power fishing — technique by which large and/or fast-moving lures are used to create reaction strikes from bass; commonly regarded as the opposite of finesse fishing

Pre-fishing — practicing for a tournament

Prespawn — the period shortly before spawning begins when big bass typically invade shallow water and feed voraciously

Punching — technique for fishing heavy matted cover (generally vegetation) with a soft plastic lure by which a slip sinker is pegged to the bait and the bait is cast, flipped or pitched into cover so that the sinker pulls the bait through the cover canopy and to the desired area below

Reaction baits — lures fished in a way that causes a bass to strike out of reflex or surprise; spinnerbaits, crankbaits and lipless crankbaits are frequently fished in a manner designed to generate reaction bites

Ribbon tail — soft plastic design with a flat, undulating tail resembling a ribbon

Ripping — retrieve technique frequently used for jerkbaits in which the lure is violently and rapidly pulled forward ("ripped") before being paused

Riprap — rocks piled along bridge abutments and banks of rivers and lakes to prevent erosion

School — a group of bass or other fish congregated in a small area

Schooling — a group of bass chasing baitfish to the surface, where they feed in groups; also called "jumps"

Shad — a prolific baitfish that serves as the primary food fish for bass in reservoirs and rivers, especially in the South; the most common types of shad are threadfin and gizzard

Shaky head — a special leadhead jig designed for rigging a worm weedless and used in the shaking technique

Shaking — fishing technique in which a straight-tail worm is threaded onto a plain jighead and shaken in a location where bass are believed to be

Shallow-runner — a crankbait designed to run 5 feet deep or less

Shiner — any of several subspecies of baitfish characterized by silver or golden scales along their sides; size generally runs from 2 to 12 inches

Sight fishing — targeting bass that are visible to the angler

Skipping — a casting method that propels a bait under overhanging cover such as a dock, trees or bushes; the force of the sidearm cast causes the bait to skip over the surface and under the cover

Slip shotting — a variation on split shotting utilizing a cylindrical weight held in place on the line by a rubber peg or strands of rubber; a finesse technique typically involving light line and small soft plastic baits

Slip sinker — a weight, usually conical in shape, commonly used when fishing soft plastic baits

Slow rolling — retrieve method most commonly associated with spinnerbaits in which the lure is retrieved just fast enough to make the blade(s) turn ("roll") and the lure crawls across the bottom

Snap-set — a hook setting technique in which the hook is set with a quick flip (or "snap") of the wrist

Soft jerkbait — a soft plastic baitfish imitation typically rigged with a wide gap hook and no weight

Sonar — an acronym for SOund, NAvigation and Ranging, the technology which makes "depthfinders" or "fishfinders" possible; often used as a synonym for "depthfinder" or "fishfinder"

Spawn — the time during which bass reproduce by building beds or nests, laying eggs and protecting eggs and fry; the timing of the spawn is related to water temperature and occurs in spring in most parts of the country

Spincast reel — a fixed spool fishing reel utilizing a conical cover that encloses the spool and helps to control line; generally mounted above the reel; commonly used by beginning anglers; also known as a "closed-face reel"

Spinnerbait — a lure characterized by a "V"-shaped wire frame with one or more spinner blades fixed to one of the wire shafts and a weighted hook dressed with rubber, silicone, hair, soft plastic or other material on the other shaft

Spinning reel — a fixed spool fishing reel mounted below the rod and commonly used by anglers when fishing light lines or small lures; also known as an "open-face reel"

Split shotting — a variation on slip shotting utilizing a split shot pinched on the line above the hook; a finesse technique typically involving light line and small soft plastic baits

Spoon — A metal, plastic or wooden lure often manufactured with a metallic finish to imitate a minnow; jigging spoons are straight slabs of metal that are hopped up and down directly beneath the boat where bass are holding in deep water; swimming spoons are lighter and shaped more like a spoon; they are meant for retrieving through shallow water, including weedy areas

Spoon-shaking — technique of retrieving a metal spoon on or near the surface of the water by reeling quickly and jerking the rod tip sharply to imitate a frightened baitfish

Stickbait — a hard or soft lure that is generally long and slender and designed to emulate a baitfish

Stickworm — a slender, cigar-shaped soft plastic bait laden with salt or other materials to make it sink quickly; stickworms are typically Texas- or wacky-rigged and fished without a weight; the lure is cast, allowed to settle briefly, then lifted and allowed to sink again

Stinger hook — an extra hook attached to the back hook of a spinnerbait, buzzbait or other lure designed to catch fish that miss the lure's main hook; also called a "stinger hook"

Stitching — technique by which a bottom bumping lure is dragged slowly across the bottom by pulling the line with one's fingers rather than moving the bait with the rod tip or reel

Strike zone — the area around an individual bass in which the fish will strike a lure; if a fish is willing to swim away from its ambush spot to hit a lure, it is said to have a large strike zone

Stroking — a jig fishing technique in which the angler sharply jumps the bait up off the bottom and allows it to fall back on a slack line

Structure — contour changes on the lake's or stream's substrate; channels, dropoffs, flats and points are all examples of structure

Suspended — condition used to describe bass that are holding at some point in the water column between the surface and the bottom

Sweep-set — hook-set method in which line is retrieved rapidly at the same time the rod is swept back and to the side

Swimbait — any of a loose group of lures that emulate baitfish and are frequently characterized by their large size in relation to other bass lures; swimbaits may be soft or hard lures, lipped or not lipped and one piece or jointed

Swinging — landing a bass by raising it into the boat or onto the bank with the rod; this practice is generally discouraged if the fish is allowed to fall to the deck of the boat or onto the bank since it could harm the fish and reduce its chances for survival once released

Tailrace — the area below a dam, typified by irregu¬lar currents and upwellings

Tailspinner — a lure consisting of a slab of lead or other weighted material with a swivel and spinner blade affixed to the rear which turn as the bait falls or is retrieved

Texas rig — a method of rigging a soft plastic in which a conical sinker is threaded onto the line before tying on a hook; the lure is then threaded onto the hook in such a manner that the hook point is concealed in the lure, making it relatively snagless

Thermocline — a distinct layer in the water column in which temperature changes more rapidly with depth than it does in the layers above or below; a thermocline may be a permanent feature of the body of water, or it may form temporarily in response to phenomena such as the solar heating of surface water during the day

Tidewater — coastal rivers, streams and lakes on which depth and water flow is affected by tidal movements

Topwater lure — an artificial bait fished across the surface of the water; typically, a floating lure

Trailer — a hook, spinner blade, pork rind/frog or soft plastic bait attached to the back hook of a lure and designed to provide extra attraction

Trailer hook — an extra hook attached to the back hook of a spinnerbait, buzzbait or other lure designed to catch fish that miss the lure's main hook; also called a "stinger hook"

Tube bait — any of a variety of soft plastic lures with a hollow cavity

Tuning — adjusting the line tie or other component of a lure (typically a crankbait or spinnerbait) to alter the running direction or action of the bait

Twitch bait — slang term for jerkbait

Wacky rig — rigging method by which a soft plastic bait is hooked through the middle and fished without a weight

Waking — retrieve technique by which a lure just under the water bulges the surface

Walking the dog — retrieve technique by which the lure moves in a zigzag pattern — like a dog pulling back and forth on a leash; caused by twitching the rod tip and reeling simultaneously in a specific cadence

Weedguard — a device, usually plastic or wire, affixed to a lure so as to cover the hook point(s), thereby making it relatively snagless

Wall hanger — a trophy bass

Water column — the vertical cross section of a water body

Wing dam — a man-made barrier that, unlike a conventional dam, only extends partway into a river or stream; typically designed to force water into a fast-moving center channel to reduce the rate of sediment accumulation while slowing water flow and erosion near the riverbanks

Yo-yoing — retrieve technique in which the lure is presented vertically in an up-and-down motion; commonly used with jigging spoons or tailspinners