Promotion: a practical example
A White pawn moving from e7 to e8 must promote as part of that move. The choice is not limited to pieces previously captured, so a player may have more than one queen. A pawn may also promote while capturing diagonally.
How to use the idea in your games
Calculate the position after the new piece appears. Promoting to a queen is usually strongest, but immediate stalemate or a knight fork can make another choice better.
A useful study question
Can you explain promotion in your own words, identify it in a position, and describe when the idea does not apply? Test the explanation on a legal board before relying on it.
Connect the ideas
Underpromotion, Passed pawn, Stalemate are useful next concepts. Follow the links to compare definitions and examples, then return to the complete chess glossary whenever an unfamiliar term appears.
Sources & further reading
References checked September 5, 2026. Linked services are independent of ChessRankings.com™.