A wait is any tile that would complete your hand. When you are one tile from winning, you are waiting, or tenpai. There are five basic shapes: two-sided, closed, edge, pair, and double pung. Knowing them tells you how many tiles can win your hand, which helps you decide when to declare riichi. Complex hands combine these shapes, and that is where practice pays off.
The five basic waits
Two-sided wait
This is the best basic wait. Two kinds of tile can finish it, and it allows pinfu.
Closed wait
Edge wait
Pair wait
Double pung wait
Counting what is left
A wait is only as good as the tiles still in play. Count them this way:
- Start with four copies of each winning tile.
- Subtract any copies in your hand.
- Subtract any copies you can see: in discards, in called sets, and as dora indicators.
A two-sided wait with six tiles left usually beats a closed wait with three.
Longer waits
Some shapes wait on three or more tiles. They are easy to miss.
Three-sided wait
Pair plus a run
The nine-sided wait
A method for hard hands
When a hand looks complicated:
- Set aside any sets you are sure about.
- For the rest, try each candidate tile in your head, from low to high.
- Ask, “If I add this tile, can the whole thing become sets plus a pair?”
It is slow at first and it speeds up with practice. Our trainer uses the same check.
Loading the Riichi Waits Trainer…
Why it matters
- Riichi decisions. Declaring on a poor wait may not be worth it.
- Furiten. You can only avoid furiten if you know all your waits.
- Choosing a discard. The best discard is often the one that leaves the most winning tiles. Daily Discard trains this.
Common beginner mistakes
- Missing a second wait. Check both ends of a long run.
- Counting waits you hold yourself. If you have all four copies of a tile, you cannot draw a fifth.
- Ignoring visible tiles. Discards can make a good wait poor.