Zugzwang

What is zugzwang?

Zugzwang is German and means roughly "compulsion to move." In chess you have to move when it's your turn, even when every move makes your position worse. Whoever ends up there is in zugzwang.

Zugzwang is most common in endgames, where few pieces are left and every move changes a lot. In the puzzles it's often about a quiet move: you threaten nothing directly, but leave your opponent without a good move.

The tricky part is that the solution doesn't look like an attack. Ask yourself what your opponent would most like to do next, and whether you can reach a position where every move they have is bad.

How the puzzles work

There are 150 puzzles here. Choose a level above the board. Within each level the puzzles get harder and harder, and when you come back you pick up where you left off.

Your opponent makes the first move, then it's your turn. If you get stuck, Hint shows which piece to move, and Show the solution plays the rest. The theme only shows once the puzzle is done, but here you already know what you're looking for.

In Puzzle training you get puzzles in this theme at your own level, and see how you're doing in each theme.

More puzzles

• Mate in one
• Mate in two
• Mate in three
• Fork
• Pin
• Skewer
• Discovered attack
• Double check
• Sacrifice
• Deflection
• Attraction
• Hanging piece
• In-between move
• Back-rank mate
• Smothered mate
• Promotion
• Endgame
• Rook endgames
• Pawn endgames

The puzzles come from Lichess, fetched on October 2, 2026.

Updated November 6, 2026