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Mah Jongg words, explained

The 41 words beginners meet most often in American Mah Jongg, in plain English. Each one links to the step of the course that teaches it, with pictures and practice.

For the rules in the order a game goes, see American Mah Jongg rules on one page.

Bam
A tile in the bamboo suit. Tiles 2 to 9 show as many bamboo stalks as their number; on our 1 Bam, a bird takes the place of one stalk. Learn it: Bams: spot the bamboo
Blind pass
On the First Left or the Last Right of the Charleston, sending on 1, 2 or 3 incoming tiles without looking at them, adding your own non-Joker tiles to make 3 in all. Learn it: Don’t look at the blind tiles
Break the wall
East rolls 2 dice, counts that many stacks from the right end of East’s wall and opens a gap there. Taking tiles starts just past the gap. Learn it: Find the break
C (concealed)
A mark on the card: the hand must be played concealed, with no calls except for Mah Jongg. Learn it: C and X: how you may play a hand
Call
Announcing that you want to claim the newest discard. You can’t take any tile you like from the middle. Learn it: A discarded tile can help your hand
Card
The list of 14-tile patterns that can win, sorted into categories. If you play by National Mah Jongg League rules, the League issues a new card every year. Learn it: The card guides you to a winning hand
Category
A heading on the card that groups related hands. It helps you find hands; it isn’t a hand. Learn it: How the card is laid out
Charleston
Trading tiles in a set routine before ordinary play begins: 3 required passes, then 3 optional ones if every player agrees. Learn it: Three passes, then a choice
Claim window
The time while the newest discard can still be called. A discard nobody claims in time becomes an old discard. Learn it: Call while the window is open
Courtesy pass
After the Charleston, one last pass of 0 to 3 tiles with the player across from you. You both pass the smaller number offered. Learn it: Agreeing on a courtesy pass
Crak
A tile in the character suit. On each tile, a large Chinese number sits above the red character that marks the suit. Learn it: Craks: spot the characters
Dead hand
A hand that can no longer win because of a rule mistake. Its player can’t draw, discard, call or win, but still pays whoever wins. Learn it: Understanding a dead hand
Discard
A tile you don’t want, placed face up in the middle of the table while you say its name. Learn it: Name your discard out loud
Dot
A tile in the circle suit. To read the number, count the separate circles. Learn it: Dots: counting circles
Dragon
Red, Green and White Dragons, 4 of each. Each goes with a suit: Red with Craks, Green with Bams and White with Dots. Learn it: The 3 kinds of Dragon
Draw
Taking the next tile from the wall on your turn, so 13 tiles become 14. Learn it: Draw, choose, discard
East
The player who starts: East breaks the wall, takes tiles first, starts with 14 tiles and makes the first discard. Learn it: Pick East
Exposure
A completed group that you show the table after a legal call. It stays in view for the rest of the game. Learn it: C and X: how you may play a hand
Flower
One of 8 tiles showing a blossom, a plant or another picture. All Flowers count as the same tile. Learn it: Flowers: 8 tiles, many pictures
Joker
One of 8 special tiles that can stand in for any tile in a group of 3 or more matching tiles, never in a single or a pair. Learn it: Where a Joker can go
Joker exchange
On your turn, swapping a matching natural tile from your hand for a Joker in an exposure. Players also call it redeeming a Joker. Learn it: Exchanging a natural tile for a Joker
Jokerless
A winning hand with no Jokers in its 14 tiles. Every payment doubles, except for Singles & Pairs hands. Learn it: The Jokerless bonus and its exception
Line
One complete hand of 14 tiles on the card. Read across it, not down the page. Learn it: How the card is laid out
Mah Jongg
A winning hand of 14 tiles that matches one line on the card, and what a player says to declare it. Learn it: The 2 ways a game ends
Natural tile
Any tile that is not a Joker. Some places in a hand, such as a single or a pair, can be filled only by natural tiles. Learn it: What the symbols mean
NEWS
A group of the 4 different Winds: North, East, West and South. They are 4 singles, so no Joker can fill one. Learn it: NEWS and years: not matching groups
Old discard
A discard nobody claimed while its claim window was open. Nobody can call it after that. Learn it: Call while the window is open
Pair
2 identical tiles. A pair always needs natural tiles. Learn it: How the tiles are grouped
Quint
5 identical tiles. A quint of a numbered tile, Wind or Dragon needs at least one Joker, because each has only 4 natural copies. Learn it: How the tiles are grouped
Rack
A long stand that holds your tiles, pictures toward you, so the other players can’t see them. Learn it: Get to know the equipment
Self-draw
Winning with a tile you draw from the wall. Each of the 3 other players then pays 2 times the printed value. Learn it: Winning on your own draw
Sextet
6 identical tiles. It is rare, because it needs Jokers or Flowers. Learn it: What can an ordinary call finish?
Single
1 tile. A single always needs a natural tile. Learn it: How the tiles are grouped
Soap
A nickname for the White Dragon. On the card it can also stand for zero, as in a year like 2026. Learn it: The 3 kinds of Dragon
Suit
A family of numbered tiles that share the same kind of design. There are 3: Bams, Craks and Dots, each numbered 1 to 9. Learn it: The 3 suits: numbers 1 to 9
Wall
Each player’s row of 19 face-down stacks, 2 tiles high, in front of their rack. Learn it: Build the 4 walls
Wall game
A game that ends when the wall runs out and nobody has won. There is no win payment. Learn it: The 2 ways a game ends
Wind
North, East, West and South, 4 of each. On our tiles, look for an N, E, W or S. Learn it: The 4 Winds
X (exposed)
A mark on the card: the hand may be played exposed, so you may call a discard to finish an allowed group of 3 or more identical tiles. Learn it: C and X: how you may play a hand

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