Check, checkmate or stalemate?
Three guaranteed points at the start of every test — and the single most expensive mistake students make.
About 14% of the test asks one question: is this position check, checkmate, stalemate, or none of the above? These are almost always the first three questions, they are fast, and they are free points once the difference is clear.
The two-question routine
Question 1: is the king attacked right now?
- No → it is either stalemate or nothing. Check whether that side has any legal move at all — not just king moves. No legal moves means stalemate, which is a draw. Any legal move means "none of the above."
- Yes → go to question 2.
Question 2: can the check be escaped? Can the king move, can something block, can something capture the attacker? Any yes means check. All no means checkmate.
Why students get this wrong
The trap is that stalemate looks like checkmate. The king has nowhere to go, so it feels lost. But if the king is not actually attacked, the game is a draw, not a win. Always ask whether the king is attacked before looking at escape squares.
Worked examples
What term best describes this situation?
- a) Black is in checkmate.
- b) Black is in stalemate. ← correct
- c) Black is in check.
- d) None of the above.
Black is NOT in check, but has no legal move at all (every king move lands on an attacked square and no other piece can move). No check + no legal moves = stalemate, which is a draw.
What term best describes this situation?
- a) White is in check.
- b) White is in stalemate. ← correct
- c) White is in checkmate.
- d) None of the above.
White is NOT in check, but has no legal move at all (every king move lands on an attacked square and no other piece can move). No check + no legal moves = stalemate, which is a draw.
What term best describes this situation?
- a) Black is in check.
- b) Black is in stalemate. ← correct
- c) Black is in checkmate.
- d) None of the above.
Black is NOT in check, but has no legal move at all (every king move lands on an attacked square and no other piece can move). No check + no legal moves = stalemate, which is a draw.
Common questions
What is the difference between stalemate and checkmate?
In checkmate the king is attacked and cannot escape, and the game is lost. In stalemate the king is NOT attacked but the player has no legal move at all, and the game is a draw.
How many UIL Chess Puzzle questions ask about check and stalemate?
About 14% of the test, usually the first three questions, which makes them the fastest points available.
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