Chess Blunder
Do you enjoy playing chess? Win or lose, every time you play it should be very satisfying, but we all want to make consistently strong moves that lead to victory. Equally important is avoiding bad moves. Depending on how damaging a bad move is, it can be a blunder, the most disastrous move. In order for you to improve your chess skills, let's understand more about blunders:
- What is a blunder?
- Why is a blunder crucial?
- Inaccuracy Vs. Mistake Vs. Blunder
- How to avoid blunders
- Recap
- Chess Blunder Video
What is a blunder?
A blunder occurs when a player makes a bad move that gives the opponent a big advantage. A blunder can cause a player to lose material, get into a strategically lost position, or even be checkmated. Sometimes, failing to take advantage of an opponent's bad move can be a blunder. When a game is annotated, a blunder is marked with a double question mark (??) after the move.
Why is a blunder crucial?
A blunder is crucial because it significantly changes the outcome of the game in favor of the opponent. Avoiding blunders is important to win more games. Even FunMasterMike makes blunders. His worst blunder is shown below, when, with White, he just made the move Qd6. To understand why this move is a blunder, see the video at the end of this article. As he says: "Blunders happen even to the best of us".
Does White's last move look like a blunder to you? Watch the video at the end to understand why the move is a blunder.
You may be surprised to learn that by making blunders, chess players can improve their level of play. When you learn from your past bad moves and improve by making good moves, even if there are better moves, you are engaging in inquiry-based learning, as explained in the article "Why Mistakes and Blunders Are Great."
As you learn, you develop a deeper understanding of chess. With this way of learning more about chess and improving from past mistakes, you are following the real-life patterns of scientists and innovators who seek to make continuous improvements. To learn more about how chess relates to logical thinking, problem solving, and calculated risk taking, check out the article "Can Chess Improve STEM Skills?" Even grandmasters make blunders, so when you make them, don't be discouraged. Learn from them and avoid making them in future games.
Inaccuracy vs. Mistakes vs. Blunders
How do inaccuracy, mistake and blunders differentiate? They are differentiated by the degree of severity or the extent to which an error affects the outcome of a game.
Inaccuracy
The least damaging bad play is inaccuracy. An inaccuracy occurs when a player makes an acceptable move but could have made a better one. In this case, the move made does not give a significant advantage to the opponent; otherwise, it would be considered a mistake or blunder. In game notation, an inaccuracy is marked with a question mark and an exclamation mark (?!).
In this game, Black's seventh move is an inaccuracy because a better move is Nf6. Then the knight can move to the d7-square to block a check on Black's king if White's next move is Bc6+.
Mistake
The next most damaging move is a mistake, which is less serious than a blunder. The consequences of a mistake are less severe, and a mistake does not necessarily lead to a change in the anticipated outcome of a game. Even after making a mistake, you may still win. However, a mistake does change the evaluation of the players’ positions for identifying which player has better prospects to win. In game notation, a mistake is indicated by a question mark (?). See the article “The 10 Most Common Mistakes Among Beginners” for more examples.
Blunder
As you know now, a blunder is the most damaging bad move. Always carefully evaluate every move before you make it. Consider this advice from famous chess player Emanuel Lasker, one of the strongest players of all time: “When you see a good move, look for a better one.” If you do evaluate each move carefully before you make it, you may make blunders less frequently. When you make a blunder, keep a positive outlook and still try to win the game because your opponent may make a more serious blunder. Even when you lose a game, your next win might be coming soon.
In the game diagram below, White's move to castle is a blunder because the opportunity to gain an overwhelming advantage could be lost. White's bishop instead should take the b-7 pawn so that the c6-square is not protected. Next, the bishop threatens to capture the a-rook or move to c6 to check the black king (and capture the black queen that would have to move to d7 to block the check).
White's move to castle is a blunder.
How To Avoid Blunders
To avoid blunders during a game, always evaluate your opponent’s forcing moves. Can your opponent check your king, capture a piece, or make a threat? If you ignore these possibilities, you may make very simple tactical errors.
What should you do when you are not actively playing a game? The best way to avoid making blunders in future games is to analyze your past games, identify any bad moves, and learn from your mistakes. ChessKid makes analyzing games easy. All your games played on ChessKid are saved in your Game Archive.
To analyze these games, use the Analyze Games option from the Learn tab on the ChessKid homepage and select a game to analyze. When you click through the moves of a game, the Analysis Board shows the best move that you could have selected. If you make bad moves, they are marked as explained above. For each inaccuracy, mistake, and blunder, observe on the Analysis Board how the computer’s evaluation of your position has changed.
You can also analyze games not played on ChessKid by using the Analysis Board and uploading the moves with Portable Game Notation or PGN. Then use the Analysis Board to identify bad moves and discover the moves that you should have made.
Learn more about how to avoid common blunders in “Most Common Opening Traps,” a video series from ChessKid.
Recap
Now you know what blunders in chess are and how they differ from mistakes and inaccuracies. All are moves that may limit your chances of winning a game. Make sure that you avoid them by analyzing your past games and learning to identify the bad moves that you have made so that you don’t repeat them.