Move (chess) – definition, usage, and notation
Move
Definition
In chess, a move is the transfer of a piece from one square to another according to the game’s rules.
Technically, each player’s turn (White then Black) is called a half-move or ply; a full move consists of one turn by White plus one by Black and is numbered in notation (1. e4 e5).
Usage in Play and Notation
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Algebraic notation: Each move is recorded by the piece symbol (omitted for pawns) and the destination square—e.g.,
Nf3,cxd5,O-O. - Clock management: Over-the-board and online time controls measure the time spent per move (increment) or for a block of moves (e.g., “40 moves in 2 hours”).
- Legal vs. illegal: A legal move respects all movement rules and cannot leave one’s own king in check; an illegal move must be retracted and often incurs a penalty in rated play.
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Special moves: Castling (
O-O,O-O-O), en-passant captures, and pawn promotion are distinctive moves with additional conditions.
Strategic Significance
Because chess is a sequential game, the value of every move is measured in tempo—roughly, how many moves it takes to realise an objective. Gaining a tempo (making an improving move while forcing the opponent’s reply) is often decisive in openings and endings.
Mastery involves weighing candidate moves, calculating variations (“If 1…d5, then 2. exd5”) and evaluating resulting positions. A single inaccuracy can waste several previous good moves; a single brilliant move can rescue a lost game.
Historical Perspective
The concept of the modern “move” stabilised in the late 15th century when the powers of the bishop and queen were enlarged. Recording moves in score-sheets became compulsory in serious tournaments by the late 19th century, enabling the study of famous games like Anderssen–Kieseritzky, “The Immortal Game,” 1851.
Computer chess refined the idea of ply; engines routinely search millions of half-moves per second. Deep Blue’s choice of the tactical 44th move
…Qe3+ led to its historic victory over Garry Kasparov in 1997.
Examples
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Opening move:
1. e4– Controls the centre and frees the queen and king’s bishop. -
Tactical shot: In Fischer–Benko, 1963 US Championship, Fischer played the astonishing
19. Bxh7+, a sacrificial move initiating a mating attack. -
Endgame finesse:
57…Ba7!in Karpov–Kasparov, World Championship 1985 fixed White’s pawns and eventually decided the game.
Interesting Facts & Anecdotes
- The longest decisive game in top-level play is 136 moves (Aronian–Navara, 2022); the longest overall is 269 moves in a 1989 Belgrade tournament, drawn by the 50-move rule.
- A move can be silent (non-forcing) or a zwischenschach (an unexpected in-between check), often turning the course of a combination.
- “My most brilliant move was when I married my wife,” joked the former world champion GM Mikhail Tal, illustrating how deeply chess vernacular has entered everyday language.
Demonstration PGN
The miniature below ends after White’s 11th move, showing how a single tempo-gaining move can punish slow development: