A hand jam is the fundamental crack-climbing technique where you insert your hand into a hand-width crack and expand it — cupping the palm and flexing the thumb — so it locks against the crack walls. A solid hand jam is secure enough to hang and even rest on, and is the building block of crack climbing.
A lieback, or layback, is a technique for climbing edges and cracks where you pull sideways on the hold with your hands while pushing your feet against the rock in opposition, leaning your body to one side. It is a powerful way to climb flakes, arete edges, and corner cracks, but can be strenuous and awkward to protect.
A drop knee, also called an Egyptian, is a technique where you turn one knee inward and downward while your foot is on a hold, twisting your hips toward the wall to bring your reach closer and take weight off your arms. It is especially useful on steep, overhanging terrain with opposing footholds.
A toe hook is a technique where you pull with the top of your toes and foot against a hold or feature, using the foot like a hand to maintain tension on steep and overhanging climbing. It's often paired with a heel hook on the other foot to stop the body swinging out on roofs.
An undercling is a hold gripped from underneath, palm up, that you pull up and out on while pushing with your feet to create opposing tension. Underclings feel powerful once you get your body above them and are common under flakes, roofs, and bulges where the rock faces downward.
A sidepull is a vertically oriented hold that you pull on sideways, toward your body, leaning away from it to create the opposing force that keeps you on. Sidepulls reward good body positioning — getting your weight on the opposite side of the hold — and are the natural counterpart to the outward-pushing gaston.
An edge is a climbing hold with a defined, flat lip that you grip with your fingertips or stand on with the edge of your shoe. Edges range from generous to razor-thin — where they become crimps — and they are the most common hold type on technical face climbs, rewarding precise edging footwork.
A flake is a thin slab of rock partly detached from the main face, creating an edge or crack a climber can pull, pinch, or layback. Flakes range from solid, useful holds to loose, dangerous blocks, so testing a flake before fully weighting it is an important safety habit.
A pocket is a hole or recess in a climbing hold that fits only one, two, or three fingers, requiring precise placement and finger strength. Pockets are common on limestone and on moulded gym holds, and the number of usable fingers — a one-finger pocket is a 'mono' — defines how hard it is and how much it stresses the tendons.
The Ewbank system is an open-ended climbing grade scale using a single number — 1, 12, 25, 35 and upward — used in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. A higher number means harder, with no letters or pluses. It rates a route's overall difficulty and converts approximately to YDS and French grades.