Defensive Communication
You and partner are defending. Declarer can see 26 cards (their hand plus dummy). You can each see only 14 (your hand plus dummy). That’s a massive information gap.
Defensive signals close the gap. When you follow suit, you’re not just playing a card. You’re talking to partner. The question is: what are you saying?
Basic signals (count and attitude) get you partway there. This article covers the sophisticated stuff: suit preference, encrypted signals, and when to deviate from standard methods.
Beyond Attitude and Count
Quick review of the basics:
- Attitude: High card = I like this suit. Low card = I don’t.
- Count: High-low = Even number. Low-high = Odd number.
Standard agreements say attitude takes priority (show attitude first, count when attitude doesn’t matter).
But that’s kindergarten. Let’s talk about what good defenders do.
Suit Preference Signals
When you can’t possibly want the suit led (or continued), your card becomes suit preference.
When Suit Preference Applies
Classic situation: Partner leads an ace and you’re giving them a ruff.
Dummy
♠ 8 3
♥ K Q 10 4
♦ A K 5
♣ J 10 7 3
You (East)
♠ 5
♥ 8 6 3 2
♦ Q 10 6 4
♣ A 9 4 2Partner leads ♠A against 4♥. You have a singleton. Partner’s ace wins, declarer follows with the 6.
Should you play the 5?
No! Play the… wait, you only have the 5. Okay, bad example.
Better example:
You (East)
♠ 5 2
♥ 8 6 3
♦ Q 10 6 4
♣ A 9 4 2Now partner leads ♠A, you have a doubleton. Play the ♠5 (low) to show interest in clubs (the lower side suit). Play the ♠2 if you want diamonds (the higher side suit, relatively speaking).
Partner gives you the spade ruff, then you lead back the suit you showed. Simple.
Present Count, Not Suit Preference
Controversial opinion: On the opening lead, give count first, suit preference second.
Why? Because partner needs to know if you have an even or odd number. That tells them whether declarer has an even or odd number. That’s critical for deciding whether to continue the suit or shift.
Suit preference can wait for the second trick.
Example: Count First
Contract: 3NT by South
Dummy (North)
♠ Q 5 3
♥ 10 6 2
♦ A K 4
♣ K Q 10 3
You (East)
♠ 10 8 7 2
♥ K 5 3
♦ 10 8 6
♣ J 7 2
Partner leads ♠JYou have four spades. Play the ♠7 (neither particularly high nor low, but start an even signal). If partner continues spades at trick two, you play the ♠2, completing your high-low to show even.
Now partner knows declarer started with doubleton ♠A-K (or K-x). They can work out whether to continue spades or shift.
If you’d played suit preference (say, the ♠10 to scream for a heart shift), partner might think you have a doubleton and declarer has four. They’ll misdefend.
Give count on opening leads in notrump. Give suit preference on obvious situations (ruffs, cashing out).
Encrypted Signals
This is where defense gets fun.
Declarer can see your signals too. Sometimes you want to send a message to partner that declarer can’t read. That’s an encrypted signal.
The Smith Peter
You’re defending 3NT. Declarer wins the opening lead and attacks a suit. Do you want partner to continue the suit they led, or shift?
Standard signals don’t help here. You already gave attitude on trick one.
Enter the Smith Peter: When declarer attacks their suit, you give a “trump echo” in that suit to show attitude toward partner’s opening lead.
High card in declarer’s suit = Please continue your suit
Low card in declarer’s suit = Please shift
Contract: 3NT by South
Dummy (North)
♠ 9 4
♥ K 10 5
♦ A K Q J 10
♣ 8 6 3
You (West)
♠ K Q J 10 3
♥ 8 6 2
♦ 7 4
♣ A 5 2
Partner (East)
♠ 8 7 6
♥ Q 9 4 3
♦ 8 6 2
♣ K 10 7You lead ♠K, declarer wins the ace, partner plays the 6 (discouraging).
Declarer attacks diamonds. On the first diamond, partner plays the ♦8 (high). That’s a Smith Peter. Partner wants you to continue spades when you get in.
You win ♣A, continue spades. Down two.
If partner had played the ♦2 (low) on the first diamond, that’s no Smith Peter. They want a shift. You’d try hearts or clubs.
Declarer sees the ♦8, but unless they play Smith Peter too (most declarers don’t), it’s just a random spot card.
Present Count in the Suit Declarer Attacks
Another encryption method: When declarer attacks a suit, give count in that suit (even if count doesn’t matter to declarer).
The information partner gains about your distribution in declarer’s suit helps them place cards in other suits.
Example: Hidden Count
Contract: 4♥ by South
Dummy (North)
♠ 10 6 2
♥ K 9 8 3
♦ A Q 4
♣ K 7 5
You (East)
♠ K Q 9
♥ 2
♦ 10 8 7 5 2
♣ A 10 6 3Declarer wins partner’s ♠J opening lead with the ace and leads ♥4 toward dummy.
You play the ♥2 (singleton, showing odd count). Partner sees this, works out declarer has 5 hearts (dummy has 4, you have 1, partner has 3).
Later, when partner has to decide whether to lead clubs or diamonds, they can count declarer’s shape. Your heart signal helped them place the contract.
When to Break the Rules
Signals are guidelines, not commandments. Break them when it helps.
Give a False Signal to Deceive Declarer
Declarer is watching your cards too. Sometimes you want them to misread the position.
Example Hand #1: Lying to Declarer
Contract: 3NT by South
Dummy (North)
♠ A 8 4
♥ K 3
♦ K Q J 10 6
♣ 8 7 2
You (East)
♠ K 6 2
♥ J 10 9 8 2
♦ 8 3
♣ A 6 3Partner leads ♥5, dummy plays low, you play the…
What? The “correct” card is the ♥10 (second highest from a sequence). But declarer has the queen (else they’d win dummy’s king). If you play the 10, they’ll know you have J-10-9. They’ll play the queen and later finesse against your jack.
Instead, play the ♥8. Declarer thinks partner has the J-10 and might misguess the heart position later.
You’re lying to partner too, sure. But partner will figure it out when you continue hearts. Declarer won’t.
Give No Signal at All
Sometimes the best signal is silence.
If your card in a suit could help declarer more than partner, don’t give a clear signal. Play a middle card that says nothing.
Example Hand #2: The Neutral Card
Contract: 6♠ by South
Dummy (North)
♠ K Q 10 6
♥ A 5
♦ K 9 4
♣ A K 8 3
You (West)
♠ 8 3
♥ K 9 7 4 2
♦ Q 10 5
♣ J 7 2Declarer draws trumps (partner shows out on the second round, so declarer has 5). Declarer cashes ♦A, then leads ♦J toward dummy’s king.
Should you give count in diamonds?
No! If you play high-low to show even, declarer will know you have ♦Q-10. If you play low-high to show odd, declarer knows partner has ♦Q-10-x. Either way, they’ll play diamonds for no losers.
Instead, play the ♦10. It could be from Q-10-x (three) or Q-10 (doubleton). Declarer has to guess. Don’t tell them.
Partner doesn’t need your count signal here anyway. The contract depends on diamonds, so partner’s cards don’t matter. Silence is best.
Advanced: The Revolving Discard
When you pitch from a suit, your first discard is attitude. Second discard is count. Third discard is suit preference for the other two suits.
Sounds crazy complicated. But it works once you’re practiced.
Revolving Discard Example
Contract: 7NT by South
Dummy (North)
♠ A 4
♥ Q 6
♦ A K Q J 10 9 8
♣ A 3
You (East)
♠ K Q J 10 2
♥ 8 7 3
♦ 5 4
♣ 9 7 2Declarer runs diamonds. You have to pitch 6 times.
First spade discard: ♠2 (low, no interest in spades)
Second spade discard: ♠10 then ♠J (high-low, showing even number in spades originally)
Third spade discard: ♠Q (high, suit preference for hearts over clubs)
Partner knows you started with 5 spades, you don’t like them, and if they have to choose between hearts and clubs, you prefer hearts.
If you’d pitched ♠K last (a lower card than queen), you’d prefer clubs.
This only matters against grand slams or difficult squeezes, but when it matters, it really matters.
Suit Preference on Returns
When returning partner’s suit, your card choice is suit preference.
Partner leads the ♠K (asking for count or attitude). You play the ♠7 (encouraging). Partner continues ♠Q, you win the ace.
Which spade do you return?
If you have ♠A-8-7-3-2, return the 8 (high) to show preference for hearts (the higher of the other two suits). Return the 2 (low) to show preference for clubs.
Partner sees your return and knows which suit to attack next.
Example Hand #3: Return Suit Preference
Contract: 4♥ by South
Dummy (North)
♠ 10 4
♥ K Q J 10
♦ 8 6 3
♣ A 9 7 2
You (East)
♠ A 9 8 2
♥ 6 4
♦ K 10 5
♣ K J 6 3Partner leads ♠K, you play ♠8 (encouraging). Partner continues ♠Q, you win the ace. Declarer followed with ♠3 then ♠5.
What do you return?
You have the ♣K-J and ♦K. Return ♠9 (your highest remaining spade) to show interest in diamonds (the higher side suit).
Partner will shift to a diamond. You’ll score ♦K and partner’s ace for down one.
If you’d returned ♠2 (lowest), partner would shift to clubs. Dummy’s ace wins, and declarer makes the contract.
Trust Your Partner (Mostly)
The whole point of signals is partnership cooperation. When partner signals, believe them.
If they give you count, use it. If they show suit preference, follow it.
The only time to ignore partner’s signal: When you can see it’s wrong, or when you have overwhelming reason to do something else.
Example: Override Partner’s Signal
Contract: 3NT
You led ♠K (dummy has ♠8-6, partner played ♠3, declarer ♠5)
Dummy has ♦A-K-Q-J-10-9
You have ♣APartner’s ♠3 says they don’t like spades. But dummy has six diamond tricks ready to cash. If you shift to partner’s suit, declarer will win, run diamonds, and make.
Override partner. Continue spades. You might set up four spade tricks before declarer gets nine.
This is rare. Most of the time, trust partner’s signal.
Practice With a Partner
Defensive signaling only works if both defenders know the system and trust each other.
Play a session where you focus only on signals. Discuss every hand after: “What were you showing?” “What did you think I had?”
It’s awkward at first. You’ll miss signals, give the wrong card, misread partner. That’s fine. After a few sessions, you’ll both start to speak the same language.
And that’s when your defense becomes fearsome. Declarer might see 26 cards, but you and partner together see 27 (everything except declarer’s hand). With good signals, you’ll know where every card lies.
That’s a real advantage.