Definition
A bet on the flop or turn with which a player wants to knock opponents out of the hand and take the pot before the showdown. Unlike a pure bluff, in a semi-bluff the player still has outs that can make their hand the best one on the turn or river. For example, Hero holds 3h 5h in the big blind, and the flop is 4d 6h Ks. Having an open-ended straight draw, Hero can semi-bluff and bet first. Such a bet has two goals: 1) make the opponents fold and take the pot on the flop; 2) if called, hit one of the outs on the turn or river and win at showdown with a straight.