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Although you can always let your chess speak for itself, it's also great when you can communicate using words. In light of Chess.com's newly announced partnership with Duolingo, this article will teach you chess-related vocabulary in multiple languages.

Let's start with the chess pieces, shall we? Here's how you can say every chess piece in 11 different languages. I also threw in some other common chess terms so you can impress your foreign friends. Let's start with Arabic, French, German, Indonesian, and Italian.

And here's Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Turkish.

Now, weirdly enough, it's also the case that sometimes we know chess terms in other languages without knowing what they literally mean. No more, I say! Or "no mais," even, if I were to speak Portuguese. Here are the most common chess terms that English borrowed from other languages and what they mean in English:

I'm forced to start with en passant (see what I did there?). This French term means "in passing," and it describes the magical act of capturing a pawn with another pawn by landing behind it.

Did you know that fianchetto is actually the diminutive of an Italian word? We're talking about "fianco" which translates to "flank." It makes a lot of sense when you think about it: you call it a "fianchetto" ("little flank") when you develop your bishop on one of the flanks instead of the center. Why little flank? I have no idea. Maybe Italians are just used to cute little places like Burano, so they decided to be cute with their chess terms, too.

Now, we arrive at the German chess terms that are harder to pronounce (at least for Portuguese speakers like me). Zugzwang means "compulsion to move," and it's not only hard to pronounce but also to spot during a game. On the bright side, the word has some rhythm and sounds cool. But not as cool as the famous "zugzwang immortal game" played by GM Aron Nimzowitsch, which you should definitely check out.

Zwischenzug actually translates to something like the English term "in-between move," despite Google thinking this has something to do with trains.

But if German is too hard for you (or if you're eating delicious pizza), you can also go with the Italian version of "in-between move." When you find one of these moves, roll up your sleeves, sit up on your chair, and proudly scream, "intermezzo!" But don't actually do it if you're in a tournament, or you risk getting kicked out.

What is your favorite chess term or piece from a non-English language? Let us know in the comments below!

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Chess Pieces And Terms In Other Languages - Chess.com

Chess Played Quick (CPQ) is Chess.com's series of events where top chess streamers complete bounties for prizes.

Chess Played Quick-Duolingo Bot Battles happens on November 20 at 12 p.m. ET/18:00 CEST/21:30 p.m. IST. Top streamers have two hours to beat as many bots as possible. Players will be ranked according to the amount of different bots they have beaten at the end of the allocated two hours. They can earn points based on their placement and by completing different challenges. Challenges are presented in the form of a bingo grid, and getting bingos awards extra points. The event features 2000 Twitch/Kick subs as the prize fund.

Players have two hours to beat as many bots as they can on our Play Computer page. Players get points based on the number of different bots they have beaten at the end of the event and via extra challenges (beating the engine does NOT count as beating a bot). The extra challenges are presented in the form of a bingo card. If players manage to get bingos (full horizontal, vertical, or diagonal lines), they earn 5 bonus points per bingo. All games must be played in challenge mode.

Challenges And Proof

Each completed challenge awards a different amount of points depending on its difficulty on a scale of one to three:

Proof of completion must be sent for each successful challenge, with any proof working as long as it's clear. Examples of clear proof include:

The challenges and the bingo grid will be sent to the participants via email and Discord an hour before the event starts and will also be listed in this article.

Placement Points

There are 2000 Twitch/Kick subs at stake this month as the prize fund. The amount of subs for each point is determined by dividing the total prize fund (2,000 subs) by the number of total points earned by all participants.

The event happens on November 20 at 12 p.m. ET/18:00 CEST/21:30 p.m. IST and lasts two hours.

Fill out the official application form below if you would like to participate in this edition of CPQ. Please make sure the account you register to play with has no progress at all on our Play Computer page. You can either use a new account or reset your crowns here. Note that only active streamers who are eligible to receive Twitch or Kick subs can win prizes.

Use the form below to claim the challenges you managed to complete during the event.

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Chess Played Quick - Duolingo Bot Battles: All The Information - Chess.com

GM Ding Liren has withdrawn from several events since becoming world champion. Now the Chinese star reveals to Chess.com that an unspecified illness is the cause of his absence and that he intends to return to tournament play in 2024.

Where is Ding? That's a question that has led to huge speculation among chess fans in the last few months. The world champion hasn't played a single tournament since May when he finished eighth in the Superbet Chess Classic in Bucharest, an event that he played less than a week after winning the title in a grueling 18-game match against GM Ian Nepomniachtchi.

Ding then withdrew from the Superbet Rapid & Blitz shortly after that event. It was an exhausted world champion who instead returned to Beijing to give interviews to the Chinese media. There, he hinted that he won't have a long career, but doesn't intend to retire just yet.

"I can't find more fun, and I want to find new happiness elsewhere," he was quoted as saying.

Ding then also cancelled his participation in the Global Chess League in June, Chess.com's Speed Chess Championship in September and the Asian Games shortly after. This week, the Grand Chess Tour also shared the news that Ding has been replaced by GM Levon Aronian and GM Liem Le in the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz and the Sinquefield Cup, where he was scheduled to play.

Ding's absence is in stark contrast to the former world champion GM Magnus Carlsen, who has been active this year. The Norwegian has played the Champions Chess Tour, the FIDE World Cup, the European Club Cup, and the Qatar Masters, and is also now set to play the European Team Championship for Norway in a week.

Ding, on the other hand, made his first public appearance in months during the Chinese National Mind Games tournament at the end of October, where he was a co-commentator on national TV along with GM Wang Rui.

His public appearance is a positive sign and hints at a potential comeback, which the Chinese star now confirms.

In an email to Chess.com, Ding reveals that he has been struggling with illness for some time. The world champion did not go into details, but said that has been the cause of his absence from tournament play.

The 31-year-old also says that he will not play in any more events in 2023 but intends to make a comeback in the 2024 Tata Steel Chess tournament that runs January 12-28. The field in Wijk aan Zee has not yet been officially announced.

The next World Championship match is scheduled to take place at the end of 2024 between defending champion Ding and the winner of the Candidates Tournament, which is set for Toronto, Canada in April 2024.

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Ding Reveals Reason For Withdrawals, Expects Comeback In 2024 - Chess.com

IM Levy Rozman's much anticipated new book was released with a bang on October 24, receiving excellent reviews, making it to the New York Times bestseller list and reaching number one on three Amazon lists.

How to Win at Chess: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners and Beyond is the long-awaited book by GothamChess, the World's biggest chess YouTuber boasting more than 4 million subscribers. As the title indicates, the book targets beginners who want to know everything about the game including "all the important moves and strategies to start off strong and keep you thinking several steps ahead."

Last week the book hit the shelves and Rozman shared a post on X/Twitter that went through his journey from playing chess in his childhood, to becoming a teacher, until becoming a Youtuber and author.

The book reached 1st in three categories: Puzzle Books, Board Games, and Chesspositions it has kept since. In the latter category, it is currently ahead of classics such as Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess, Modern Chess Openings by GM Nick de Firmian, and IM Jeremy Silman's How to Reassess Your Chess.

The chess YouTuber also impressively reached 25th among all books on Amazon for one day. "This is insane," he wrote on X/Twitter. "Some of these books sell millions of copies. Thank you all so, so much."

Days later, the book has even made it to 4th place on the prestigeous New York Times bestseller list, in the category "Advice, /How-To & Miscellaneous".

Rozman revealed two months before the release that more than 12,000 copies had been sold. His publisher Penguin Random House declined to give further comments to Chess.com on the number of book sales.

How To Win At Chess has since dropped to 142nd on the overall Amazon list. And the reviews on Amazon could hardly be better: 97% out of 164 reviewers rated it 5/5, with comments such as:

"This is the first book I've seen that could easily introduce someone who doesn't know anything about the game."

"It's fantastic! Please don't buy it, I want to beat you all."

"Levy can be proud, this is a fantastic book and fills a gap in modern chess literature."

In an interview with The Guardian last month, Rozman said that he did his best to hide the fact that he was playing chess due to the negative stereotype that came with the game.

Now I have kids come up to me that tell me how much they love chess and they love my ideas, and I look at them and I go, You look like you would have bullied me in school, he said.

GothamChess held a live event in Brooklyn, New York, which was sold out. More events are planned in November, he said in a recent YouTube videoone of them is already close to sold out.

While Rozman has seen incredible success, not everyone seems thrilled about his YouTube titles, which have been criticized for being "clickbait." Last week GM Hans Niemann, currently playing the FIDE Grand Swiss in the Isle of Man, reacted to one GothamChess video where his play in a title was described as "perfect."

"Some seek solace in YouTube clickbait because they have nothing insightful to provide regarding actual chess games.", Niemann wrote, with Rozman responding:

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'GothamChess' Releases New Book, Immediately Tops Three ... - Chess.com

The 2023 European Team Chess Championship kicks off this Saturday in Budva, Montenegro. The event will be played from 11th to 20th November in the Conference Hall of the *****Hotel Splendid.

The Championship is played in 9 rounds, swiss system, with Open and Womens sections separately. The time control will be 90 minutes for 40 moves + 30 minutes for the rest of the game, with 30 seconds increment for every move played starting from move one.

70 teams from 39 European federations will participate in the event, with 38 teams in the Open section, and 32 teams in the Womens event. Azerbaijan (Rtg average 2701) headlines the Open tournament, followed by Romania and Germany (Rtg average of 2676 each). England (Rtg average 2671) will be the fourth seed and Armenia (Rtg average 2667) is ranked fifth on the starting list.

Top European players will represent their federations at the championship including the World No1 GM Magnus Carlsen (NOR, 2829), GM Richard Rapport (ROU, 2748), GM Teimour Radjabov (AZE, 2745), GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (AZE, 2734), GM Vincent Keymer (GER, 2721), GM Nikita Vitiugov (ENG, 2712), GM Haik Martirosyan (ARM, 2708), GM Bogdan-Daniel Deac (ROU, 2700), GM Jorden Van Foreest (NED, 2700), and GM David Navara (CZE, 2695).

The team of Georgia (Rtg average 2471) top seeds the Womens tournament. Azerbaijan (Rtg average 2392) is second on the starting list, followed by Germany (Rtg average 2385), Ukraine (Rtg average 2365) and Bulgaria (Rtg average 2362).

The best rated players in the Womens event are GM Alexandra Kosteniuk (SUI, 2526), GM Bella Khotenashvili (GEO, 2488), GM Nino Batsiashvili (GEO, 2487), GM Elisabeth Paehtz (GER, 2473), WGM Dinara Wagner (GER, 2467), IM Meri Arabidze (GEO, 2458), IM Efroimski Marsel (ISR, 2448), IM Gunay Mammadzada (AZE, 2441), and GM Pia Cramling (SWE, 2440).

Starting rank lists of both events can be found here.

The Opening ceremony of the event will be held tomorrow evening at the playing venue of the tournament. The start of the Opening ceremony is scheduled for 19:00 CET, and the Captain meeting will take place at 21:00 CEST.

Live broadcast of the games with commentaries by GM Alojzije Jankovic and Dragana Nikolovska will be available exclusively on the ECU YouTube Channel.

The ECU General Assembly 2023 and the ECU Congress 2023 will be held from 17-20 November in Budva, during the European Team Chess Championship 2023. Detailed information about the ECU Congress 2023 can be found here.

Official website of the event

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European Team Chess Championship 2023 starts in Budva ... - European Chess Union