Climbing glossary
Climbing has its own vocabulary and nobody explains it to you on the way in. Here is the lot, in plain English, with what each one means in our gym. You do not need any of it to come and climb.
Arete#
The outside corner where two walls meet. You climb it by squeezing or balancing around the edge rather than pulling straight down.
Auto-belay#
A device that pays out rope as you climb and lowers you gently when you let go, so you can climb high without a partner. We have two of them and they are included with entry - you just need a harness, which you can hire at the desk.
Beta#
The sequence of moves that makes a problem work. Asking someone for beta is completely normal. Shouting it at a person who did not ask is called spraying beta, and we would rather you did not.
Bouldering#
Climbing short problems close to the ground with no rope, landing on thick matting instead. Our walls are 3 to 4 metres high over padded flooring, so falling off is part of the sport rather than an emergency.
Brush#
A stiff brush on a handle for scrubbing chalk and skin off holds, so the next person gets the same grip you did. Brushing a hold before you try it is good manners.
Chalk#
Magnesium carbonate, for dry hands and better friction. Chalk balls in a chalk bag and liquid chalk are both fine here. Loose powder makes a cloud, so keep it tidy.
Crimp#
A hold so small you can only get your fingertips on it. Crimps come later - nothing on a yellow problem needs them.
Dyno#
A jump between holds where both hands and both feet leave the wall at once. It looks spectacular and is mostly commitment.
Flag#
Sticking a leg out to one side as a counterweight so your body does not swing off the wall. The cheapest and most useful technique in climbing.
Flash#
Sending a problem first go, using beta somebody gave you beforehand.
Grade tag#
The coloured tag on a problem's starting holds, which tells you how hard it is. Yellow is easiest at V0-1, then green V2-3, blue V4-5, red V6-7 and black V8-9. Purple is the Joker.
Hangboard#
A fixed board of edges and pockets for training finger strength, in the upstairs training area. It is a tool for experienced climbers, not a warm-up.
Harness#
The leg-and-waist rig that clips you to the auto-belay. Hire one at the desk; staff will fit it and show you how to use it.
Heel hook#
Hooking your heel over a hold and pulling with your leg, which takes load off your arms and keeps you close to the wall.
Hold#
Anything bolted to the wall that you grab or stand on. Jugs, crimps, slopers, pinches and pockets are all holds.
Induction#
The short safety run-through every first-timer gets from our staff: how to fall, where to land, and how to share the mats. You sign the induction form afterwards, which is separate from the waiver you fill in online.
Joker#
Our purple tag. The grade is deliberately not written down - climb it and decide for yourself.
Jug#
A big, obvious, friendly hold you can wrap a whole hand around. Yellow and green problems are full of them.
Lock-off#
Holding yourself still on a bent arm so the other hand is free to move. The thing that stops a reach becoming a lunge.
Mantle#
Pressing down on a hold to push yourself up over it, the way you get out of a swimming pool.
Match#
Getting both hands, or both feet, onto the same hold.
Matting#
The padded floor under every wall. It is not a seat, not a bag rack, and not somewhere to stand while another person is climbing above you.
Moonboard#
A standardised steep training board with an app full of set problems. It is identical in every gym that has one, so a Moonboard problem you do here is the same problem anywhere. Ours is the 2024 edition.
Overhang#
Wall that leans out over you, so your weight hangs off your arms and your feet work to stay on.
Pinch#
A hold you squeeze between thumb and fingers rather than pulling down on.
Pocket#
A hold with a hole in it that takes one, two or three fingers.
Problem#
One single climb, defined by the tagged holds of one colour from the start holds to the finish. Bouldering has problems; roped climbing has routes.
Project#
A problem you cannot do yet and keep coming back to. Having a project is the point at which most people stop counting sessions.
Reset#
When our setters strip a section of wall and put up entirely new problems. We do not publish a reset schedule, so Instagram is where new sets get announced.
Route setter#
The person who designs and bolts the problems. The reason the wall is different this month from last month.
Send#
To climb a problem cleanly from the start holds to the finish, in one go, without coming off.
Slab#
Wall that leans back away from vertical. All balance and footwork, almost no hauling.
Sloper#
A rounded hold with no edge to hang off. You hold it with friction, an open hand and good body position.
Smear#
Standing on bare wall where there is no foothold, trusting rubber and pressure to hold your foot in place.
Spotting#
Standing behind an outdoor climber to steer their fall onto the pad. Indoors on deep matting we do not spot - we keep the landing clear instead.
Spraying beta#
Giving a climber advice they did not ask for, usually while they are mid-problem. See Beta, and please do not.
Toe hook#
Hooking the top of your foot behind a hold to stop your body swinging away from the wall.
Top out#
Finishing a boulder by climbing over the top of it rather than at a final hold.
V-grade#
The international bouldering scale, sometimes called the Vermin scale, running from V0 upwards. Our colour tags sit in front of V-grades so you do not have to learn the numbers on day one.
Volume#
A large wooden shape bolted onto the wall that changes its angle, usually with holds screwed onto it. Treat it as part of the wall - you can stand on it.
Waiver#
The form everyone signs before their first climb, online at thehold.studio/waivers-code-of-conduct. Under 18s need a parent or guardian to sign it.
Zone#
The space underneath and around a climber, where they will land if they come off. Keeping out of somebody's zone is the rule your induction will spend the most time on - look up before you walk across the mats.
First visit? Walk straight in.
No booking needed for you and a few mates. Fill in your waiver online, wear something comfortable, bring socks if you are hiring shoes. We will take it from there.