Mahjong, a game of skill, strategy, and a little bit of luck, has been enjoyed for centuries. As you delve into the exciting world of online mahjong, you'll quickly encounter a rich vocabulary of terms and jargon that can initially seem daunting. Whether you're a complete beginner or an experienced player looking to refine your understanding, this comprehensive glossary will demystify the language of mahjong, helping you navigate game discussions, understand rules, and enhance your overall playing experience.
From the fundamental components to advanced strategic phrases, we'll break down the essential terminology used in various mahjong variants, with a particular focus on concepts relevant to online play. Let's get started on mastering the lingo!
1. Basic Game Components and Actions
Understanding the core elements and fundamental actions is the first step to playing mahjong. These terms describe the physical parts of the game and the basic moves players make during a round.
Tile: The fundamental playing piece in mahjong. Tiles are typically made of plastic or bamboo and ivory, featuring various designs. A standard mahjong set usually contains 144 tiles, though some variants use fewer or more.
Wall: At the start of a game, all shuffled tiles are stacked face-down to form a long 'wall' around the centre of the table. Players draw tiles from this wall.
Deal: The initial distribution of tiles to each player from the wall. Typically, each player receives 13 tiles, with the dealer receiving 14.
Draw: To take a new tile from the wall. This is the most common action on a player's turn.
Discard: To place an unwanted tile face-up into the centre of the table (the 'discard pile'). This action usually follows a draw.
Discard Pile (or Discard Pond): The collection of face-up tiles that players have discarded during the game. These tiles are available for other players to claim for certain sets.
Flower/Season Tiles: Special bonus tiles found in some mahjong variants. They don't form part of a meld but award points when revealed. If drawn, they are immediately replaced by drawing another tile from the end of the wall.
Dealer (East Wind): The player who starts the round and is responsible for dealing the tiles. The dealer typically has a slight advantage or disadvantage depending on the scoring rules. The dealer position rotates clockwise after each round, unless the dealer wins.
Prevailing Wind: A specific wind direction (East, South, West, North) that designates the current round of play. For example, in an 'East Round', all players' scores are affected by their wind seat relative to East.
Seat Wind: Each player is assigned a wind direction (East, South, West, North) based on their position at the table relative to the dealer. This can influence scoring.
2. Tile Types and Sets: Chows, Pongs, Kongs
Mahjong tiles are categorised into suits and honours, and the primary goal of the game is to form specific combinations of these tiles, known as 'melds' or 'sets'.
Tile Types
Suit Tiles: The most numerous tiles, divided into three suits, each numbered 1 to 9:
Bamboos (Bams): Depicted as bamboo sticks.
Characters (Cracks): Depicted as Chinese characters.
Circles (Dots): Depicted as circles or discs.
Honour Tiles: Special tiles that do not belong to a suit:
Winds: East, South, West, North. There are four of each.
Dragons: Red Dragon, Green Dragon, White Dragon (often a blank tile or a frame). There are four of each.
Melds (Sets)
Melds are the combinations of tiles you aim to collect. They can be 'closed' (formed secretly in your hand) or 'open' (formed by claiming another player's discard, making them visible to everyone).
Chow (Sequence): A set of three consecutive tiles of the same suit (e.g., 3, 4, 5 of Bamboos). A Chow can only be claimed from the player immediately to your left (the player whose turn it was before yours).
Pong (Triplet/Trio): A set of three identical tiles (e.g., three Red Dragons, three 7 of Circles). A Pong can be claimed from any player's discard.
Kong (Quadruplet/Quartet): A set of four identical tiles (e.g., four East Winds). A Kong can be formed in a few ways:
Concealed Kong: Four identical tiles drawn and kept in your hand. You declare it, reveal it, and draw a replacement tile.
Exposed Kong (Pong to Kong): You already have an open Pong on the table, and you draw the fourth identical tile. You add it to your Pong, creating an exposed Kong, and draw a replacement tile.
Stolen Kong: You claim the fourth identical tile from another player's discard to complete a Kong. This becomes an exposed Kong, and you draw a replacement tile.
Pair (Eyes/Head): Two identical tiles. This is the final component needed to complete a standard mahjong hand, making it 14 tiles in total (four melds and one pair).
3. Hand States and Winning Conditions
Understanding when and how a hand can be won is crucial. These terms describe the various states of a player's hand and the conditions for declaring a win.
Ready Hand (Tenpai): The state where a player's hand is just one tile away from winning. They are 'waiting' for a specific tile or tiles to complete their hand.
Winning Tile: The tile that completes a player's ready hand, allowing them to declare Mahjong.
Mahjong (Hu/Ron/Tsumo): The declaration of a win. A player achieves Mahjong when they have completed their hand, typically consisting of four melds and a pair (14 tiles in total, though some special hands differ).
Tsumo (Self-Draw): Winning by drawing the winning tile yourself from the wall.
Ron (Robbing the Discard): Winning by claiming another player's discard as your winning tile.
Robbing the Kong: A rare but significant event where a player declares Mahjong by claiming a tile that another player is using to complete an exposed Kong. The player who was forming the Kong loses.
Wall Dead (Riichi): In some variants, particularly Japanese Mahjong, 'Riichi' is a declaration made when a player reaches a ready hand, betting 1000 points. This commits them to their current hand and often restricts future discards, but significantly increases their potential score. Learn more about Mahjongonline and the different variants available.
Draw Game (Liu Ju): A game where no one wins before all the tiles from the wall have been drawn. Specific rules dictate how points are handled in a draw game.
4. Scoring Elements and Faan Descriptors
Scoring in mahjong can be complex, varying significantly between different regional rulesets. However, many systems share common principles, often based on 'Faan' or 'Fan' (points or doubles) and 'Fu' (base points).
Faan (Fan/Point): A unit of scoring that represents a doubling factor or a specific point value awarded for certain features in a winning hand. The more Faan a hand has, the higher its score. Common Faan elements include specific melds, winning conditions, or special tile combinations.
Fu: Base points awarded for specific melds (e.g., Pongs are worth more Fu than Chows), the winning tile, and other minor elements. Fu are usually calculated first, then multiplied by the Faan doubles.
Limit Hand (Yakuman/Fan Tai): A hand with a very high Faan value, often reaching the maximum possible score in a single round. These are rare and difficult to achieve, often involving highly specific and valuable combinations of tiles.
Clean Hand (All Simples/Pinfu): A hand composed entirely of Chows and a pair, with no Honour tiles or Pongs. This is a common Faan element, particularly in Japanese mahjong.
Mixed One Suit (Half Flush): A hand composed of tiles from one suit, plus Honour tiles. This is a valuable Faan element.
Pure One Suit (Full Flush): A hand composed entirely of tiles from a single suit, with no Honour tiles. This is a very high-value Faan element.
All Pongs (Pung Pung Hu): A hand consisting of four Pongs and a pair. A strong Faan element.
Seven Pairs: A special hand consisting of seven distinct pairs. This is a common special hand in many variants.
Thirteen Orphans (Kokushi Musou): A highly rare and valuable special hand consisting of one of each Honour tile, one of each 1 and 9 of all three suits, and one duplicate of any of those 13 tiles to form a pair. It's one of the most sought-after hands.
Big Three Dragons: A hand with Pongs of all three Dragon tiles (Red, Green, White). A high-value Faan element.
Big Four Winds: A hand with Pongs of all four Wind tiles (East, South, West, North). This is often a Limit Hand due to its extreme rarity and difficulty.
5. Common Phrases and Strategic Terms
Beyond the formal rules, mahjong players often use specific phrases and strategic terms to discuss gameplay, tactics, and their intentions.
Calling (Chii/Pon/Kan): The act of verbally declaring your intention to take a discarded tile to form a Chow (Chii), Pong (Pon), or Kong (Kan). In online play, this is typically done via a button prompt.
Open Hand: A hand that has one or more exposed melds (Chows, Pongs, or Kongs) claimed from other players' discards. An open hand often restricts future Faan possibilities but allows for quicker completion.
Closed Hand (Concealed Hand): A hand where all melds are formed from tiles drawn by the player, with no tiles claimed from discards. Closed hands often qualify for higher Faan values.
Safe Tile: A tile that is unlikely to be claimed by another player for Mahjong. Players often try to discard safe tiles when they are close to a ready hand or when they want to avoid giving another player a win.
Dangerous Tile: A tile that is likely to be the winning tile for one or more opponents, especially if they are in a ready hand state. Discarding a dangerous tile carries the risk of 'feeding' an opponent their win.
Discard Strategy: The tactical approach to which tiles a player chooses to discard, aiming to minimise risk, set up future melds, or deny opponents their desired tiles. For more strategic insights, you might want to check out our services for advanced gameplay tips.
Tile Efficiency: A concept in mahjong strategy focused on optimising your hand development by discarding tiles that are least useful and keeping those that offer the most potential for forming melds quickly.
Waiting (for a tile): The specific tile or tiles a player needs to complete their hand once they are in a ready hand state. For example, 'waiting on a 5 and 8 of Circles'.
Furiten (Japanese Mahjong): A rule where a player cannot win on a discarded tile if they have previously discarded any of their waiting tiles, or if any of their waiting tiles are present in their own discard pile. This forces them to win by self-draw (Tsumo).
- Dora (Japanese Mahjong): Bonus tiles that, when present in a winning hand, increase its Faan value. Dora tiles are revealed from the wall and are typically the next tile in sequence or the next Wind/Dragon after a specific indicator tile.
Mastering mahjong terminology is an ongoing process, but with this glossary, you're well-equipped to understand the core concepts and jargon you'll encounter in online mahjong games. The more you play and engage with the community, the more natural these terms will become. Keep practising, keep learning, and most importantly, have fun playing mahjong! If you have more questions, our frequently asked questions page might have the answers you're looking for.