Contact (Japanese: 接触 contact) or direct attack (Japanese: 直接攻撃 direct attack) is a term used to describe the condition when one Pokémon in a battle physically touches the opponent in order to deal damage with a move. The distinction between moves that make contact and moves that do not was introduced in Generation III.
Contact is distinct from whether a move is considered physical or special in nature from Generation IV onwards, but most moves that make contact are physical moves, while most special moves do not make contact; status moves do not make contact in any case.
The use of contact-based moves can trigger various items or Abilities of the foe, such as Cute Charm and Effect Spore.
Hitting a substitute does not make contact with the Pokémon behind it.
While confusion damage is physical, it does not make contact.