page_title: Glossary of professional wrestling terms
section_title: P
hierarchical_section_title: Glossary of professional wrestling terms / P
caption_attribution_description: English: The Ultimate Warrior in his last appearance on RAW
context_page_description: Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence of fans so as not to reveal the worked nature of the business. In recent years, widespread discussion on the Internet has popularized these terms. Many of the terms refer to the financial aspects of professional wrestling in addition to in-ring terms.
context_section_description: paper
  To give out tickets to an event to make it look better attended than it otherwise would have been.
  Parts unknown
  
  A vague, fictional location. Billing a wrestler as being from "parts unknown" (rather than from their real hometown or another actual place) is intended to add to a wrestler's mystique. In some territories, the phrase commonly was applied to masked wrestlers, such as Kane. In the post-kayfabe era, it is used less and less, and usually with a certain air of levity.  Sometimes, wrestlers can hail from other similarly abstract places, for example Stardust being billed from "the fifth dimension" or Damien Demento being billed from "the outer reaches of your mind", or may have their location simply omitted from introductions, such as in the cases of Big Show and Braun Strowman.
  payoff
  The culmination of an angle or storyline with the intention of providing gratification for the fans. Typically involves a face finally overcoming a dominant heel.
  Philly pop
  The act of a promotion bringing in a former Extreme Championship Wrestling wrestler when in Philadelphia.
  Pillmanize
  The act of "breaking" an opponent's ankle, arm or neck by placing it between the seat and headrest of a steel chair and then stepping or jumping on the chair. Named for Brian Pillman, who suffered a severe ankle injury (in kayfabe) when attacked in this manner by Stone Cold Steve Austin.
  pinfall
   
  Holding a wrestler's shoulders to the mat for a three count, to win a fall.
  pipe bomb
  A worked shoot promo where the wrestler giving the promo appears to break kayfabe and touches on real-life topics that are considered taboo, such as backstage politics or issues which are not typically addressed in storylines due to bad publicity. This was a term first used by CM Punk.
  plant
  A wrestler, stagehand or paid actor who poses as a fan, usually seated in the front row of an event. Plants are often victimized or attacked by heel wrestlers in order to gain heat, or are used to participate in matches or storylines after being "randomly selected" from the crowd. Notable examples of plants were the WWE debut of Santino Marella, who won the Intercontinental Championship after being picked out of the crowd, or at WrestleMania 34 when a 10 year old boy named Nicholas (in reality the son of referee John Cone) was chosen by Braun Strowman to be his tag team partner in his match against Cesaro and Sheamus.
  poaching
  The act of luring away key talent from one company to another, usually with offers of higher pay. It is sometimes done deliberately to weaken a company by taking away their top draws. Poaching is typically done by larger companies. A more extreme form of poaching, wherein multiple wrestlers from a company are lured away, is referred to as raiding.
  policeman
  police woman
  
  A wrestler, often a respected or feared shooter or street fighter, responsible for enforcing the promoter's will against recalcitrant wrestlers by performing unscripted or painful moves within a match, punishing or intimidating them for defying the management. In today's industry it is a largely outdated because such tactics are illegal if they can be proved. Typically it is only still used by dirt sheets and outside commentators who believe one wrestler is deliberately placed in matches against more dangerous opponents and injured deliberately after disagreements with management. While allegations of this sort persist, including being made by wrestlers themselves, few have been proven. Also describes a wrestler who keeps order in the locker room by threats of physical force.
  pop
  A cheer or positive reaction from the crowd.
  popcorn match
  Originally described a post-intermission match viewed as not important enough to keep fans from trips to the concession stands. Now describes a more lighthearted match designed to provide relief of dramatic tension.
  potato
  A strike to the head which makes real contact. A wrestler who endures one or more potatoes is likely to potato the perpetrator back, which is known as a receipt.
  powdering
  The act of forcefully exiting the ring.
  pre-show
  A free televisi
caption: The Ultimate Warrior was popularly billed as being from parts unknown
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