Mahjong Terms
Plain definitions for the words you will hear at the table, with the style each one comes from.
Applies to: All stylesMahjong has its own vocabulary, and each style adds more. A pung is three identical tiles, a kong is four, and a chow is a run of three. American players also talk about the Charleston and exposures. Riichi players talk about yaku and furiten. Search below, and follow the links in our lessons for more detail.
- Bam
- A tile from the bamboo suit. Hong Kong players say Bamboo. Riichi players say souzu. Style: American.
- Blind pass
- During the last pass of a Charleston, passing tiles you just received without looking at them, or passing fewer of your own. Your group may have its own custom, so ask first. Style: American.
- Break the wall
- To open the wall at a spot chosen by dice, so that players can take their first tiles. Style: All four-player.
- Calling
- Claiming another player’s discard to complete a set. You must claim it before the next player takes a turn. Style: All four-player.
- Card
- The National Mah Jongg League’s annual list of winning hands. It changes every year, and you buy it from the League. Style: American.
- Charleston
- The tile passing done before play in American mahjong: three tiles right, across, then left, with an optional second round and a courtesy pass. Style: American.
- Chi (chee)
- Calling a discard from the player on your left to complete a run. Style: Riichi.
- Chiitoitsu (chee-toy-tsoo)
- A special closed hand of seven different pairs. Style: Riichi.
- Chinitsu
- Full flush: every tile comes from one suit. Style: Riichi.
- Chow
- Three tiles in a row in one suit, such as 3, 4, and 5 of Dots. American mahjong has no chows. Style: Hong Kong, Riichi.
- Closed hand
- A hand with no sets called from other players. Several Riichi scoring patterns require it. Style: Riichi.
- Concealed
- Kept on your rack or in your hand and not shown to others. Some American hands must be concealed. Style: All four-player.
- Courtesy pass
- After the Charleston, trading up to three tiles with the player across, if you both agree on how many. Style: American.
- Crak
- A tile from the character suit. Hong Kong players say Character. Riichi players say manzu. Style: American.
- Dead hand
- A hand that can no longer win, for example because it holds the wrong number of tiles. The player keeps following the rules but cannot declare mah jongg. Style: American.
- Dead wall
- Fourteen tiles set aside at the end of the wall. They hold the dora indicators and the replacement tiles for kongs. Style: Riichi.
- Discard
- The tile you throw away at the end of your turn, placed face up. Style: All four-player.
- Dora (DOH-rah)
- A bonus tile that adds han to a winning hand. Dora alone does not make a hand able to win. Style: Riichi.
- Dot
- A tile from the circle suit. Riichi players say pinzu. Style: All four-player.
- Dragon
- An honor tile: Red, Green, or White. American players call the White Dragon Soap. Style: All four-player.
- East
- The dealer’s seat. East starts with 14 tiles and discards first. Style: All four-player.
- Exposure
- A set you called and placed on top of your rack, face up, for all to see. Style: American.
- Faan
- The unit for scoring a Hong Kong hand. Many tables require a minimum, often three, to win. Style: Hong Kong.
- Flower
- A bonus-style tile. In Hong Kong play, flowers and seasons are set aside and replaced. In American play, flowers are used in hands. Style: American, Hong Kong.
- Free tile
- A tile with nothing on top of it and an open left or right side. Only free tiles can be matched. Style: Mahjong Solitaire.
- Fu (foo)
- Minipoints. Along with han, they set the value of a winning hand. Style: Riichi.
- Furiten (foo-ree-ten)
- A state that stops you from winning on a discard, usually because one of your winning tiles is in your own discards. You can still win by drawing. Style: Riichi.
- Han
- The main unit of value for a Riichi hand. Each scoring pattern and each dora adds han. Style: Riichi.
- Honitsu
- Half flush: one suit plus honor tiles. Style: Riichi.
- Honor tile
- A wind or dragon. These have no numbers, so they cannot form runs. Style: All four-player.
- Ippatsu
- A bonus for winning within one uninterrupted go-around after declaring riichi. Style: Riichi.
- Joker
- A wild tile that can stand in for any tile in a set of three or more. It cannot be used in a pair or as a single tile, and it may not be passed in the Charleston. Style: American.
- Joker exchange
- On your turn, swapping the real tile for a joker in any player’s exposure. Style: American.
- Kan
- The Riichi name for a kong: four identical tiles. Style: Riichi.
- Kong
- Four identical tiles. Style: All four-player.
- Mah jongg
- The American spelling of the game, and what you say when you win. Style: American.
- Mahjong Solitaire
- A single-player matching game using mahjong tiles. It is a different game from four-player mahjong. Style: Mahjong Solitaire.
- Manzu
- The character suit. Style: Riichi.
- Meld
- A complete set of tiles: a pung, kong, or chow. Style: All four-player.
- NMJL
- The National Mah Jongg League, founded in 1937 in New York. It publishes the annual card used in American play. Style: American.
- Pair
- Two identical tiles. A standard winning hand has one pair, and it is often called the eyes. Style: All four-player.
- Pinfu
- A closed hand of four runs and a valueless pair, won on a two-sided wait. Style: Riichi.
- Pinzu
- The circle or dot suit. Style: Riichi.
- Pon
- Calling a discard to complete a set of three identical tiles. Style: Riichi.
- Pung
- Three identical tiles. Style: All four-player.
- Pusher
- A tool attached to a rack that helps slide a wall of tiles toward the center. Style: American.
- Quint
- Five identical tiles. Since a set has only four of a tile, a quint needs at least one joker. Style: American.
- Rack
- The long holder for your tiles. It also holds your wall and exposures. Style: American.
- Riichi (ree-chee)
- A declaration that your closed hand is one tile from winning. You bet 1,000 points and can no longer change your hand. Style: Riichi.
- Ron
- Winning on another player’s discard. Style: Riichi.
- Season
- One of four bonus tiles: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Style: Hong Kong.
- Sextet
- Six identical tiles, made with jokers. Style: American.
- Shanten
- How many tiles away you are from waiting. Zero means you need one tile to win. Style: Riichi.
- Soap
- The White Dragon. It often appears as a blank or framed tile. Style: American.
- Souzu
- The bamboo suit. Style: Riichi.
- Tanyao
- All simples: a hand with no ones, nines, or honors. Style: Riichi.
- Tenpai
- Waiting: one tile from a complete hand. Style: Riichi.
- Tsumo
- Winning on a tile you drew yourself. Style: Riichi.
- Wait
- The tile or tiles that would complete your hand. Style: All four-player.
- Wall
- The rows of face-down tiles that players draw from. Each style builds it to a different length. Style: All four-player.
- Wind
- An honor tile: East, South, West, or North. Winds also name each seat, and in some styles the current round. Style: All four-player.
- Yaku (YAH-koo)
- A scoring pattern. A Riichi hand needs at least one to win. Style: Riichi.
- Yakuhai
- A value set: three dragons, your seat wind, or the round wind. Style: Riichi.
- Yakuman
- A limit hand, the highest kind of hand in Riichi. Style: Riichi.