A
check is a condition in
chess,
shogi and
xiangqi that occurs when a player's
king (or general in xiangqi) is under threat of
capture on their opponent's next turn. A king so threatened is said to be
in check. A player must get out of check, if possible, by
interposing a
piece between the threatening piece and the king, capturing the threatening piece, or moving the king to a square where it is no longer in check. If the player cannot move out of check, the game ends in
checkmate and the player loses.