Foil, épée, riposte, en-garde: the Fencing ABC casually explains every term from our fencing guides – gear, technique, and tactics made simple.
## Introduction What on earth is a "riposte," and why does everyone keep staring at the "target area"? Honest answer: fencing has its own language, and most guides just assume you already speak it. No wonder your first read of "parry," "en-garde," or "maraging steel" leaves you wondering if you wandered into the wrong sport. It's not a big deal though – the terms are quick to learn, and afterward every fencing guide suddenly reads like a language you already know. This glossary collects every fencing term you'll run into across the DOMISPORTS guides and explains each one the way a coach would in the locker room – casual, with an everyday comparison, no dictionary tone. Bookmark this page and come back whenever a word trips you up.
## The Three Weapons Everything starts with picking a weapon – the three disciplines play out completely differently tactically.
Foil (Florett) is the light, flexible starter weapon. Hits only count from the tip, only on the torso (the padded vest), and right of way applies (see below). Most clubs start beginners on foil because it teaches the core logic of fencing most cleanly – think of it as the tutorial level of the sport.
Épée (Degen) is the heavier, stiffer weapon. Here the entire body counts as target area – head to toe – and there's no right of way: whoever hits first scores, no matter who "started" the action. That makes épée tactically its own animal: more patience, less risk.
Sabre (Säbel) is the fastest, most aggressive weapon. Hits count from both the tip AND the blade edge (a cutting-and-thrusting weapon), with the target area above the hip. Sabre bouts feel almost like they're on fast-forward.
Target area is simply the body zone where a hit officially counts – defined differently for each weapon (see above). Anything outside it doesn't score, even if the tip technically lands.
Right of way (also priority) applies in foil and sabre: if both fencers hit at the same moment, only the one who started the action first gets the point – like right of way at a traffic intersection deciding who goes first. Épée has no such rule.
## Gear & Equipment Fencing puts more protective gear on you than almost any other sport – and every piece has a job.
Mask protects your head and face and must withstand 1600 newtons of force at the bib according to safety standards – that's not an accessory, that's the reason fencing is so safe.
Fencing jacket is the padded jacket that stops 800 newtons of penetration force. Underneath it goes the underarm plastron (Unterziehplastron) – a half-jacket on the weapon-arm side, essentially a second layer of protection exactly where most hits land.
Fencing glove protects the weapon hand and gives you grip on the weapon – like a cycling glove, just with puncture resistance.
Fencing breeches and socks (Stutzen) are the long trousers (past the knee) plus the knee-high socks that cover the rest of the leg. Rule: no bare skin on the strip.
Electric vest (lamé) is the conductive vest worn over the jacket in foil and sabre – it tells the electronic scoring system exactly where you were hit.
Body cord and weapon cord electrically connect you to the scoring system – weapon to body cord to vest to scoring box. Sounds complicated, but it's just wiring, like a headphone cable with three connectors in a row.
Maraging steel is the steel modern fencing blades are legally required to be made from. It survives more bending cycles before breaking than older blade steel – simply safer.
Piste (Planche) is the fencing strip: 14 meters long, about as wide as a generous hallway. The entire bout happens here, back and forth.
Scoring box (Melder) is the electronic device that signals valid hits with a light and a sound – the technical referee, while the human referee oversees the rules.
## Technique & Movement These terms show up in every technique guide – once you know them, everything else clicks into place.
En-garde is the ready stance: feet at a right angle forming an "L," knees slightly bent, weapon out in front of you. Everything happens from this position – attack, defense, retreat. Think of it as the ready position in tennis.
Lunge (also fente) is the explosive forward step that closes the distance to your target: the arm extends first, then the back leg pushes off, and the front leg shoots forward. Afterward you recover back into en-garde in a controlled way.
Footwork (Beinarbeit) is the umbrella term for all stepping patterns – forward, backward, lunge. Sounds trivial, but it's actually what decides fencing bouts, not the arm movement.
Advance (Marche) is a single step forward: front foot moves first, back foot follows at the same distance.
Retreat (Rompez) is a single step backward: back foot moves first, front foot follows.
Parry is the defensive move where you deflect the opponent's blade with a small, controlled motion – not a wild swat, but a minimal, precise correction, like blocking in handball.
Riposte is the counter-attack that follows immediately after a parry – defending and striking back in the same motion, one continuous flow. For experienced fencers, parry and riposte are inseparable.
Distance sense (Distanzgefühl) is the trained feel for exactly how far you need to stand from your opponent to just barely land a hit with a lunge – one of the single most important skills in fencing, built purely through repetition.
## Tactics & Rules Broken tempo is a tactical trick: you start an action, then stop mid-movement to bait the opponent into reacting too early – like a fake pass in basketball.
Second intention means deliberately using a first action as bait to set up the actual planned second action – fencing as a multi-layer mind game.
Anticipation is the ability to read the opponent's intention from their preparatory movements before the real action even starts – the actual difference between beginners and elite fencers, more than raw reflexes.
## Pro Tip Don't try to memorize every term up front – learn on demand instead: read a guide, look a word up here the moment it trips you up, then keep reading. That way each term gets anchored to a real situation in your head, which sticks far better than cramming a list.
### What is a riposte in fencing? A riposte is the counter-attack that immediately follows a successful parry – you deflect the opponent's blade and strike back in the same motion. Parry and riposte together form one continuous movement and are among the first combined techniques beginners learn.
### What does target area mean in fencing? Target area is the body zone where a hit officially counts – torso only in foil, everything above the hip in sabre, the entire body in épée. Hits outside the target area aren't scored by the electronic system, even if the tip lands cleanly.
### What is the difference between foil, épée, and sabre? The three weapons differ in weight, target area, and rules. Foil is light, targets the torso, and uses right of way. Épée is heavier, the whole body counts, and there's no right of way – whoever hits first scores. Sabre is the fastest, hitting with tip and blade above the hip.
### What is the en-garde stance? En-garde is fencing's ready stance: feet at a right angle, knees slightly bent, weapon held out in front of the body. Every attack, parry, and retreat starts from here – it's the neutral position you return to after every action.
### What does right of way mean in fencing? Right of way applies in foil and sabre: if both fencers land a hit at the same instant, only the fencer who started the action first scores the point. It works like right of way at a traffic intersection and makes these two weapons tactically dependent on seizing the initiative. Épée has no such rule.
Fechten: Getting Started Overview