Glossary of Mahjong terms used in this guide
A reference of all the terms used in this guide. Some terms are rarer or invented terms translated from their Japanese/Chinese equivalents.
Common terms
- Suited tiles中: 序数牌
- Tiles numbered 1-9 in three suits: Characters (
![[1 Character]](/tiles/1m.svg)
-![[9 Characters]](/tiles/9m.svg)
), Circles (![[1 Circle]](/tiles/1p.svg)
-![[9 Circles]](/tiles/9p.svg)
), and Bamboo (![[1 Bamboo]](/tiles/1s.svg)
-![[9 Bamboos]](/tiles/9s.svg)
) - Characters suit中: 万子
- One of the three suited tile types, numbered 1-9 (-)
- Circles suit中: 筒子(tǒng zi)
- One of the three suited tile types, numbered 1-9 (-)
- Bamboo suit中: 索子(suò zi)
- One of the three suited tile types, numbered 1-9 (-)
- Honour tiles中: 大牌
- Consists of the 4 Wind tiles (
![[East]](/tiles/wind_1.svg)
![[South]](/tiles/wind_2.svg)
![[West]](/tiles/wind_3.svg)
![[North]](/tiles/wind_4.svg)
) and 3 Dragon tiles (![[Red Dragon]](/tiles/dragon_red.svg)
![[White Dragon]](/tiles/dragon_white.svg)
![[Green Dragon]](/tiles/dragon_green.svg)
) - Wind tiles中: 风牌
- East (), South (), West (), and North Wind () tiles
- Dragon tiles中: 三元牌
- Red (), White (), and Green Dragon () tiles
- Bonus tiles中: 花牌
- Flowers (
![[Flower 1]](/tiles/flower_1.svg)
![[Flower 2]](/tiles/flower_2.svg)
![[Flower 3]](/tiles/flower_3.svg)
![[Flower 4]](/tiles/flower_4.svg)
), Seasons (![[Season 1]](/tiles/season_1.svg)
![[Season 2]](/tiles/season_2.svg)
![[Season 3]](/tiles/season_3.svg)
![[Season 4]](/tiles/season_4.svg)
), and Animals (![[Cat]](/tiles/animal_cat.svg)
![[Rat]](/tiles/animal_rat.svg)
![[Rooster]](/tiles/animal_rooster.svg)
![[Centipede]](/tiles/animal_centipede.svg)
) - Flower tiles中: 花牌
- Four unique flower tiles ()
- Season tiles中: 季牌
- Four unique season tiles ()
- Animal tiles中: 动物牌
- Cat (), Rat (), Rooster (), Centipede ()
- Simple tiles中: 中张牌
- Suited tiles between 2 and 8, e.g.
![[2 Characters]](/tiles/2m.svg)
- End tiles中: 老头牌
- Suited tiles 1 and 9 ()
- Terminal tiles中: 幺九牌
- End tiles and Honour tiles combined ()
- Value tiles中: 番牌
- Honour tiles that give 1 Tai in a triplet (e.g. ,,, or if you're the dealer)
- Ready hand中: 听牌
- A hand that is minimally one tile away from a winning hand
- Complete handAlso: Winning hand中: 胡牌
- A hand of 14 tiles that consists of 4 sets and a pair (except for Seven Pairs or Thirteen Orphans); a winning hand also requires the minimum Tai to be achieved
- Set中: 面子
- A group of 3 tiles that forms either a sequence (e.g.
![[3 Characters]](/tiles/3m.svg)
) or a triplet (e.g. ) - EyesAlso: Pair中: 将眼/眼睛
- A pair of identical tiles required in a winning hand (e.g. )
Technical terms
- n-away hand中: 向听日: shanten
- A hand that minimally waits for n more tiles to become ready, hence n+1 tiles to become complete
- Tile acceptance中: 进张日: ukeire
- The kinds and the number of tiles that a hand waits for to get closer to a ready hand
- Tile efficiency日: 牌效率
- Developing your hand to maximise your speed of making a winning hand
- Shape中: 搭子日: machi
- A synergistic tile pattern that can help form sets or a pair of eyes
- Two-sided waitAlso: Open wait中: 两面/二面日: ryanmen
- A shape of two consecutive tiles (e.g.
![[4 Characters]](/tiles/4m.svg)
) that waits on either end to form a sequence - Gutter waitAlso: Closed wait, Middle wait中: 中洞/坎张日: kanchan
- A shape of tiles with a gap in between (e.g.
![[3 Circles]](/tiles/3p.svg)
![[5 Circles]](/tiles/5p.svg)
) that waits on the middle tile to form a sequence - Edge wait中: 边独/边张日: penchan
- A shape at the edge of a suit (e.g.
![[8 Bamboos]](/tiles/8s.svg)
or ![[2 Circles]](/tiles/2p.svg)
) that waits on one tile to form a sequence