Damage
Objects can deal "damage" to creatures, planeswalkers, and players. This is generally detrimental to the object or player that receives that damage. See rule 119, "Damage."

Damage Assignment Order
The order, announced during the declare blockers step, that an attacking creature will assign its combat damage among the multiple creatures blocking it, or that a blocking creature will assign its combat damage among the multiple creatures it’s blocking. See rules 509.2 and 509.3.

Dash
A keyword ability that allows creatures to be especially aggressive. See rule 702.108, "Dash."

Deal
See Damage.

Deathtouch
A keyword ability that causes damage dealt by an object to be especially effective. See rule 702.2, "Deathtouch."

Deck
The collection of cards a player starts the game with; it becomes that player’s library. See rule 100, "General," and rule 103, "Starting the Game."

Declare Attackers
To choose a set of creatures that will attack, declare whether each creature is attacking the defending player or a planeswalker that player controls, and pay any costs required to allow those creatures to attack. See rule 508.1.

Declare Attackers Step
Part of the turn. This step is the second step of the combat phase. See rule 508, "Declare Attackers Step."

Declare Blockers
To choose a set of creatures that will block, declare which attacking creature each creature is blocking, and pay any costs required to allow those creatures to block. See rule 509.1.

Declare Blockers Step
Part of the turn. This step is the third step of the combat phase. See rule 509, "Declare Blockers Step."

Defender
A keyword ability that prohibits a creature from attacking. See rule 702.3, "Defender."

Defending Player
The player who can be attacked, and whose planeswalkers can be attacked, during the combat phase. See rule 506.2. In certain multiplayer games, there may be more than one defending player; see rule 802, "Attack Multiple Players Option," and rule 810.7.

Defending Team
The team who can be attacked, and whose planeswalkers can be attacked, during the combat phase of a Two-Headed Giant game. See rule 810.7.

Delayed Triggered Ability
An ability created by effects generated when some spells or abilities resolve, or when some replacement effects are applied, that does something later on rather than at that time. See rule 603.7.

Delve
A keyword ability that lets you exile cards from your graveyard rather than pay generic mana to cast a spell. See rule 702.65, "Delve."

Dependency
A system that may be used to determine in which order continuous effects in the same layer or sublayer are applied. See rule 613.7. See also Timestamp Order.

Deploy Creatures Option
An option that may be used in certain multiplayer variants to pass control of creatures between teammates. See rule 804, "Deploy Creatures Option."

Destroy
To move a permanent from the battlefield to its owner’s graveyard. See rule 701.7, "Destroy."

Detain
A keyword action that temporarily stops a permanent from attacking, blocking, or having its activated abilities activated. See rule 701.27, "Detain."

Dethrone
A keyword ability that puts a +1/+1 counter on a creature when it attacks the player with the most life. See rule 702.104, "Dethrone."

Devoid
A characteristic-defining ability that makes an object colorless. See rule 702.113, "Devoid."

Devotion
A numerical value a player has, equal to the number of mana symbols of a certain color among the mana costs of permanents that player controls. See rule 700.5.

Devour
A keyword ability that can have a creature enter the battlefield with +1/+1 counters on it. See rule 702.81, "Devour."

Dies
A creature "dies" if it is put into a graveyard from the battlefield. See rule 700.4.

Discard
To move a card from its owner’s hand to that player’s graveyard. See rule 701.8, "Discard."

Double Strike
A keyword ability that lets a creature deal its combat damage twice. See rule 702.4, "Double Strike."

Double-Faced Cards
Cards with two faces, one on each side of the card, and no Magic card back. See rule 711, "Double-Faced Cards."

Draft
1. A Limited format in which players choose cards one at a time from booster packs, then construct a deck solely from the chosen cards and basic land cards.

2. To choose a card during a draft and put it into your card pool.

Draft Round
Part of a draft in which each player opens an unopened booster pack and the cards in those booster packs are drafted. See rules 905.1a and 905.1b.

Draw
1. To put the top card of a player’s library into his or her hand as a turn-based action or as the result of an effect that uses the word "draw." See rule 120, "Drawing a Card."
2. The result of a game in which neither player wins or loses. See rule 104.4.

Draw Step
Part of the turn. This step is the third and final step of the beginning phase. See rule 504, "Draw Step."

Dredge
A keyword ability that lets a player return a card from his or her graveyard to his or her hand. See rule 702.51, "Dredge."

During (Obsolete)
Some older cards used the phrase "during [phase], [action]." These abilities were called "phase abilities." In general, cards that were printed with phase abilities have received errata in the Oracle card reference so they have abilities that trigger at the beginning of a step or phase. "During" still appears in current card text, but only in its normal English sense and not as game terminology.