American Mahjong FAQ

No — you can only call a discard to complete an exposure of three or more identical tiles (a Pung, Kong, or Quint), or to complete your whole hand for Mahjong. The one exception is that final Mahjong tile: it can be anything your hand needs, including the second tile of a pair. Until then, pairs come only from your own draws and the Charleston.

Once you rack the tile, the previous discard is no longer callable per NMJL® rules. If someone wanted to call but didn't say it before your rack landed, they lose the call. This is why pausing a beat before racking is good etiquette — it gives the table a chance to call.

Mahjong always wins — if one player calls Mahjong and another calls for a Pung, Kong, or exposure, the Mahjong call gets the tile. If two players both call for an exposure (Pung or Kong) at the same time, the player closest to the right of the discarder (next in turn order) gets it. The same tiebreaker applies to simultaneous Mahjong calls — next in turn order from the discarder wins.

The stretch of time when a discard can still be claimed: from the moment it's named until the next player commits to their turn. The window closes as soon as that next player does any one of three things — racks their drawn tile, starts a joker exchange, or makes their own discard. Just drawing the wall tile and tapping it on the table, without racking, does NOT close the window — the previous discard is still callable until one of those commitments happens. This is why the polite pause before racking matters — it keeps the window honestly open.

Claiming another player's discarded tile to complete a Pung, Kong, Quint, or Mahjong. You must say it out loud ("Call!" or "Mahjong!") before the next player racks.

A hand marked "C" on the card. You cannot call any tiles during play (you can still claim a discarded tile to win on Mahjong, but not before). Concealed hands are listed at higher base values than equivalent exposed hands — but the higher value is already in the printed number, NOT a payout multiplier.

A tile placed face-up in the center of the table at the end of a turn — you must say its name out loud as you place it. Once you say its full name, or the tile touches the table, it's dead to you: you can't take it back into your hand or use it for a joker exchange. But if you've only said part of the name (like “seven”) and it's still in your hand, you can change your mind. Meanwhile, other players can still call your discard (to complete a group) until the next player racks. A discard can never be used for a joker exchange, though — those always come from a player's own hand.

Laying a called group face-up on top of your rack so all players can see it. Required when you call a Pung or Kong. Exposures cannot be taken back, and they reveal information to opponents — every exposure is a tell.

A hand marked "X" on the card. You may call tiles and expose groups during play. Easier to build than concealed hands, and worth less.

On your turn, if any exposed group contains a joker and you have the real tile that joker stands for, you can swap your real tile for the joker. Hand the tile to the player whose rack holds the joker — never reach onto their rack yourself. The tile you give always comes from your hand — never from the discard pile.

Four identical tiles. Can be made by drawing all four yourself, or by calling a discarded 4th when you already hold three. Jokers can substitute in a Kong.

The win declaration. You say "Mahjong!" the moment your 14 tiles match a hand on the card. If you're winning on someone's discard, you must call it before the next player racks their drawn tile; a self-drawn win you declare on your own turn.

Two identical tiles. Cannot be formed by calling (except as the final tile of a Mahjong claim). Jokers cannot substitute in a pair, ever.

Three identical tiles. Can be made by drawing them yourself or by calling a discarded 3rd when you already hold two matching tiles (two real, one real plus a joker, or two jokers). Jokers can substitute in a Pung.

Five identical tiles — yes, that exists in some hands on the card. Since only 4 copies of each number, wind, or dragon tile exist, a quint of those always uses at least one joker — and the tiles you hold to make it can even be all jokers.

A Pung is a group of 3 identical tiles. A Kong is 4 identical tiles. Both count as one group toward your hand. Some NMJL® hands also use Quints (5). All of these accept Jokers as substitutes — pairs and singles do not.

A move on the first left (pass 3) or the last right (pass 6) where you push along 1, 2, or 3 tiles you just received without looking at them. Not allowed on the courtesy pass. Peeking before deciding is considered cheating.

The unique tile-trading ritual at the start of every American Mahjong hand — 6 passes plus an optional courtesy. First Charleston (right → across → left) is mandatory; second Charleston (left → across → right) is optional. Followed by the optional courtesy pass with the player across.

After both Charlestons, you and the player across may trade tiles. Each of you names a number from 0 to 3, and you both pass the lower of the two. Naming zero means no trade — that's always allowed. No jokers.

The mandatory first three passes: right → across → left. Everyone must do all three. Cannot be skipped.

Mnemonic for the Charleston sequence: Right → Over (across) → Left → Left → Over → Right → optional courtesy. The two halves mirror each other around the "LL" in the middle.

The optional second round of three passes (left → across → right) that happens after the first Charleston. Any single player can call "stop" to skip it without explanation — but this must be done before it begins. Once the second Charleston starts, all three passes must be completed; you can't stop partway through.

You hand the real tile to the player whose rack holds the joker. They make the actual swap and hand you the joker. Reaching onto someone else's rack is considered poor table etiquette.

There's no official NMJL® time limit in casual play — but the general expectation is to keep a reasonable pace so everyone stays engaged. Most casual hands aim to finish in about 10–15 minutes. Tournament play is faster: tournaments typically target 4 hands per hour, which leaves only a few seconds per turn. Either way, taking a full minute to decide on a discard is considered poor etiquette.

Per NMJL® Article 67: a Mahjong claim on a misnamed tile is valid, and the misnamer alone pays the winner 4× the hand value. The other two players pay nothing. This is the most expensive mistake in the game.

The official NMJL® rule covering misnamed discards. If a player calls Mahjong on a misnamed tile, the Mahjong is valid and the misnamer alone pays the winner 4× the hand value. The other two players pay nothing.

Announcing a discarded tile by the wrong name. Covered by NMJL® Article 67 — if Mahjong is called on a misnamed tile, the misnamer alone pays the winner 4× the hand value. If an exposure is called on a misnamed tile, the call is invalid (no penalty unless the claimer prematurely makes an incorrect exposure, which kills their hand).

Official NMJL® rule: every discard must be announced out loud as it's placed. Other players need to hear the tile name in order to call it.

Etiquette convention: after you draw a tile, count to about 3 before placing it on the sloped part of your rack. That pause is the window where any other player can call the previous discard. Racking too quickly can rob a legitimate call.

Local customs a group agrees to that go beyond (or bend) official NMJL® rules — extra penalties for a false Mahjong, blanks as wilds, different stakes, and so on. None are official, and every group's mix is different. When you join a new table, it's perfectly polite to ask about any table rules before the first hand.

Commenting on the live hand — hinting at what you're collecting, reacting to a discard, or coaching another player mid-hand. It's considered poor form, because stray remarks leak information the tiles are meant to keep hidden. Save the analysis for after someone calls Mahjong.

Pushing your tiles face-down into the center at the end of a hand to mix them with the rest of the set. Once the winner's hand is verified and payouts are settled, everyone throws their tiles in and the next round begins. Don't throw your hand in before a Mahjong call is verified — per the NMJL® card's "Mah Jongg in Error" rules, a player who throws in their hand on an unverified call that turns out false carries that error themselves; the hand can't be reconstructed.

The Charleston is meant to be quick. Each pass takes seconds. Beginners are forgiven for being slower, but the goal is to develop a fast rhythm.

Naming your discard out loud is an NMJL® rule, not optional politeness. Other players need to hear it in order to call.

The discard is callable until the next player racks their drawn tile (places it on the sloped part of the rack). That's why pausing before racking is good etiquette — it gives people time to call.

Yes. Discards stay face-up on the table for the entire hand — you can scan them anytime to count what's dead and read the table. Some groups push older discards aside or sort them; either way they're visible.

Generally no — once you've named the tile and set it in the center, it belongs to the table and your turn is over. If you name it wrong, that's a misnamed discard, which carries its own consequences under NMJL® Article 67 rather than a do-over. The habit to build: look at the tile, say its name, then let go — in that order.

The first Charleston (right, across, left) is required every hand. The second Charleston (left, across, right) is optional — any single player can stop it before it begins, no explanation needed — but once it starts, all three passes must be completed; you can't stop partway through. After that, the courtesy pass with the player across from you is also optional; either of you can pass zero tiles.

Every turn: draw a tile from the wall, decide what to keep, discard one tile face-up.

That's a false Mahjong. Per NMJL® rules your hand is dead for the rest of the round — you stay seated but stop drawing and discarding, and you still pay the winner if someone else goes out. Some groups add an extra penalty, but that's a house rule. The etiquette takeaway: don't throw your tiles in until a Mahjong has been verified, so a wrong call doesn't cost you your own hand.

That's called a wall game. The hand simply ends — no one pays and no one wins. Everyone throws their tiles in, the set gets mixed, and you build new walls for the next hand. Wall games are common, especially at careful tables, so don't be discouraged by one.

A wall game means nobody won. No payments, just reshuffle and deal again.

Name every discard out loud and place it face-up in the middle of the table. This is an official NMJL® rule — it gives other players a chance to call.

East already has 14 tiles, so they discard one to start the game. Play then moves to the right.

Yes — the NMJL® card defines all legal winning hands for the year. Without it you can't play official American mahjong. The card is published annually by the National Mah Jongg League, expires each spring, and is inexpensive (around $14) — available directly from nationalmahjonggleague.org.

A single hand typically takes 15–25 minutes once you know the rules — longer for beginners. A typical home session runs 4 hands (each player is East once) and takes 2–3 hours. Tournaments are shorter and timed.

X means the hand is exposed — you may call discards and lay groups on top of your rack as you go. C means concealed — you can't call anything during play except the single tile that completes your Mahjong. Concealed hands are harder to finish, so the card prices them higher; that higher value is already in the printed number.

American Mahjong is built for exactly four players, and the NMJL® card assumes four. It also works with three: the official NMJL® way skips the Charleston entirely — deal 13 tiles to each of the three players (East takes an extra 14th, as in the four-player game), leave the unused fourth wall on the table to draw from, and play the tiles you're dealt. (A popular house-rule version adds a fictional fourth player to keep the Charleston alive.) For two players, the standard format is the community two-player variant commonly called Siamese Mahjong — each player builds two hands at once on two racks (27 tiles, no Charleston), and you win only by completing both. ("Siamese Mah Jongg®" is a trademark of its owner; MAHJ is an independent educational tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.) With five or more, the simplest approach is to rotate, with one person sitting out each hand.

→ Siamese Mahjong

American mahjong (NMJL®) uses 152 tiles (adds 8 Jokers and 8 Flowers), requires the NMJL® card defining specific legal hands, includes the Charleston tile-passing phase, and scores by hand value with the discarder paying double. Chinese mahjong uses 144 tiles (no Jokers, sometimes no Flowers), lets players make any valid pattern without a card, has no Charleston, and scores by point-counting rules that vary by region.

American mahjong sets generally range from $60 to over $400, with most standard complete sets (racks and pushers included) priced between $100 and $250. Budget-friendly basic sets can be found around $60; premium, designer, or high-end wooden sets often exceed $300–400. Make sure the set includes Jokers — sets sold as "Chinese mahjong" often don't.

→ Gear Guide

No — never. Jokers only substitute in groups of three or more identical tiles (Pungs, Kongs, Quints, and larger). Pairs and single tiles must always be the real, natural tiles. This is why Singles & Pairs hands can't use Jokers at all, and why the pair is often the hardest part of a hand to finish.

Yes — Jokers live in the wall like every other tile. Drawing one is how most Jokers enter play. Once a Joker is in your hand it's yours; no special procedure needed.

No. Jokers can never be passed in the Charleston or the courtesy pass — if you're lucky enough to be dealt one, it stays with you. Passing one by accident is a real (and awkward) beginner mistake, so double-check your three tiles before you slide them over.

Discarded jokers are dead. They cannot be called or claimed by anyone — which is why players almost never discard them, only as a last resort when folding.

Joker exchanges happen only on your own turn — after you've drawn from the wall (or called a discard and made your exposure), and before you discard. Give the real tile it stands for; take the joker from any exposed group.

Jokers substitute only in pungs, kongs, and quints — groups of 3+. They can never be used in pairs or singles.

You can call for Pungs (3), Kongs (4), Quints (5), or Mahjong. Pairs and sequences can't be called.

Don't panic — your exposure might fit a different hand on the card. Your hand is only dead if the exposed group doesn't work for ANY valid hand. Always look for alternatives before giving up.

A hand that can no longer reach a valid winning position (because of an illegal call, wrong tile count, or other rule violation). Per NMJL®, another player must declare it dead — you can't call your own hand dead. Until then, keep playing defensively. Once declared, you stop drawing and discarding, stay seated, and still pay the winner.

Calling Mahjong when your hand isn't actually valid. Per NMJL® rules, your hand is dead for the rest of the round — you stay seated but stop drawing and discarding, and you still pay the winner if someone else goes out. Some groups add an extra penalty, but that's a house rule.

Drawing a tile from the wall before it's your turn. Treated as a serious error in NMJL® rules — it can cost you a dead hand.

Don't panic — your exposure might fit a different hand. Check the card. Your hand is only dead if the exposed group doesn't work for ANY valid hand.

Dead-hand penalties don't apply during the Charleston. If a tile-count error is found before play begins, the entire hand is reshuffled and redealt.

Once you discard, your turn is over. You can't go back and claim Mahjong on a tile you already had. Your hand is still alive — keep playing for another win.

Stop, speak up immediately, describe what happened factually, and let the table decide. Self-reported mistakes are almost always handled gracefully. Hidden ones are not.

Hand your tile to the player whose rack holds the Joker — they swap it for you. Don't reach over and touch their rack. Announce the exchange out loud as you do it.

The rules in parentheses say "Any 4 Consec. Nos." — meaning the numbers are a pattern. 1-2-3-4 could be 4-5-6-7, 5-6-7-8, or any other consecutive set. One suit only.

Same color on the card means same suit. You pick which suit — but all groups in that color must match.

The 'C' marker means the hand must remain fully concealed — no exposures during play, not even one Pung. The only exception is calling Mahjong on a discard that completes your entire hand — that's allowed. But calling for a Pung, Kong, or Quint makes your hand dead. If you can't win on this tile right now, pass.

Concealed hands, marked 'C' on the NMJL card, cannot have any exposures during play. A player going for a concealed hand will never call for a Pung, Kong, or Quint — though they CAN call a discard if it completes Mahjong. Otherwise every tile must come from the wall or Charleston. Zero exposures with no clear pattern is a strong signal.

The official NMJL® rule is simple: no Charleston with three players. East discards a tile and play begins immediately. The ghost player method is a popular house rule, not the official approach.

Make sure your rack is sorted — Bams, Craks, Dots grouped together, ordered by number. This makes patterns visible.

Two exposures with the same number (3) but different suits is a strong signal for a like-numbers hand. Their third group is almost certainly Pung of 3-Crak. Do not discard 3-Craks to this player.

Wide early, narrow late. By the mid-game you must commit to a single hand and start discarding tiles from your backup candidates.

Any single player can stop the Charleston after the first three passes. It only takes one.

Never. Jokers can never be passed in the Charleston — they're your most valuable tiles.

Players pass tiles they don't want. Passing Craks means Craks don't fit their hand. This tells you Craks are likely safer to discard toward that player later, and possibly more available in the wall for your own Crak hand.

If other players are passing Dots, they're not collecting them. That's good news for you if Dots are part of your plan.

Every winning hand is exactly 14 tiles. If your count doesn't add up to 14, re-check how you're reading the groups.

Four tiles together form a kong — one group of 4 identical tiles. Two pairs would be shown with a space between them (XX XX).

Every Charleston pass is exactly 3 tiles, traded face-down with another player.

Each player takes their own tiles — from the face-down pile, or from the wall if your table builds one. Under the latest rules both take 27, and East opens with a regular pick-and-discard turn. Some tables play the older 28/27 way, where East just discards the extra tile to start. With 27 tiles you have enormous flexibility in choosing your two hands.

Three players get 13 tiles; East gets 14. In the final round, East takes both the 1st and 3rd tiles (the "leapfrog") and ends up with one extra. East's first discard officially starts the game.

2 tiles high. Build the bottom row first, then place the top row on top.

Each wall is 19 tiles long and 2 tiles high. 4 walls × 19 × 2 = 152 tiles, exactly the whole set.

Bob's 18 tiles are arranged into 6 groups of 3 before the Charleston begins. Each group represents Bob's pass for that round — players pass to Bob (tiles are discarded) and receive from Bob's pre-set groups in order.

Early game (Turns 1–5) is the time for patience and flexibility, not commitment. You haven't seen enough draws yet to know what the wall holds. Keep your candidates open and let the tiles guide you.

When your hand only needs one suit, carrying all three means slow discards and no momentum in any direction. Commit to your primary suit by mid-game and shed the rest — even tiles that looked useful earlier.

When key tiles are already discarded in mid-game, your primary hand is unlikely to complete. Pivoting to a backup that uses tiles you already hold is the sharper play. The longer you wait, the fewer draws you have left to recover.

The suit nobody is discarding is the hot suit. At least one player is actively collecting it. Discarding Bams into a table where nobody wants to throw them is a real risk.

C means concealed. You cannot call any discards during play — except for Mahjong (the final winning tile). Every other tile must come from the wall or Charleston.

Keep 2–3 candidates after the deal. Committing to 1 too early means every bad draw hurts you. Narrow down as the game progresses.

The ghost player method is a popular house rule, not an official NMJL® rule. It's widely played because it keeps the Charleston in the game, but you should make sure everyone at the table agrees before using it.

Tiles that fit none of your candidates have zero value. Discard them first.

Once you expose, you can still switch hands — but only to a hand that uses your exposed group. Your exposed tiles stay on your rack exactly as they are. You cannot switch to a hand that doesn't include those tiles.

Once 3 of a tile are out of play (in discards or exposed groups), no one can pung it without two Jokers, so it's almost always safe to discard. This is called 'reading the wall.'

A blind pass is when you pass along tiles you just received without looking at them. Per NMJL® rules, blind passes are only legal on the first left (pass 3) and the last right (pass 6) — the final pass of each Charleston. Not on the courtesy. You can pass 1, 2, or all 3 tiles blind.

Overlapping tiles mean switching costs you almost nothing. If your backup uses the same suit cluster as your primary, you only lose a few discards rather than starting over. This is why scanning the card for two same-suit hands at the deal is smart preparation.

If both your hands compete for the same tiles or jokers, you'll be fighting yourself all game. The key skill is finding two non-competing hands in your initial 27–28 tiles — ideally different suits and different numbers.

First Charleston: right, then across, then left. Second Charleston (optional): left, then across, then last right. Then the courtesy pass with the player across.

Early exposures sacrifice flexibility and secrecy. Under NMJL® rules, once you expose, your choices narrow to hands that use your exposed group. It's usually smarter to wait until you're confident in your full hand path before calling.

Every exposure reveals information about an opponent's suit and hand pattern — and under NMJL rules, once they expose, their choices narrow to hands that include their exposed group. Frequent early callers show their direction early and lose flexibility. That's valuable data for you.

Flexibility is power. Keeping tiles that could work for multiple hands on the card gives you the best chance of finding a winning path.

Pairs and triples you already hold are the strongest signals. A hand that uses tiles you have is far more realistic.

When a wall runs out, the player on the left pushes their wall toward the center. Dealing continues from there.

You can freely move concealed tiles between your two racks at any point — even after one rack has an exposure. Only the exposure itself is locked to its rack. All other concealed tiles can still move freely.

If you don't have obvious tiles to give away, or you're unsure what you're building, "zero" is the smart, safe answer.

Jokers are most valuable on rare tiles. Don't use one on a common middle-suit tile you'll likely draw. And remember — jokers can never substitute in a pair.

Both play and deal move to the right (counter-clockwise). East takes tiles first, then the player to East's right, then across, then left. Each player takes their own tiles from the wall.

Always start with tiles that have zero value to you — tiles in none of your candidate hands. Jokers are almost never discarded — save them unless you're folding as a last resort.

East rolls the dice. The total tells East where in their own wall to break.

With three players, the Charleston circle breaks down unfairly. One player ends up receiving from both sides before passing, and dumping tiles into the empty seat costs nothing. The official rule skips it entirely to keep the game fair.

With 2\u20133 candidates, most tiles you draw are useful for something. Committing to 1 hand too early means every bad draw is a wasted turn.

Completing one hand doesn't win the game — you need both. But you can declare your first hand done, which protects those Jokers from opponent swaps. Then you continue drawing and discarding until your second hand is complete.

A single 9 Crak doesn't connect to your pair of 1s — they sit at opposite ends of the suit, too far apart for one consecutive run. It's isolated here, so pass it and keep tiles that build on your pair.

The player who receives your tiles sees them. Passing 3 of the same suit signals you're not collecting that suit. Information goes both ways.

Self-draw wins work the same in 3-player as in 4-player: all remaining players pay double. With three players, both opponents pay double the hand value.

When you're 2 tiles away, the wall doesn't have enough draws left to support starting over. Stay the course. A near-complete hand beats a fresh start almost every time in late game — the main exception is if your needed tiles are completely dead in the discard pile.

Jokers buy you runway. With 3 jokers in your rack, they can fill in for tiles that are slow to arrive — your hand may be closer than it looks. Don't bail on a strong primary just because draws have been slow. Let the jokers work before you switch.

A hand you never complete pays nothing. The 25-cent win is always worth more than the 50-cent attempt that never comes together. Assess viability first, value second.

Commit to Bams. You have a triple (3s), two pairs (5s and 7s), plus 2 Jokers — a strong foundation. The Craks are scattered singles with no pairs. Drop the Red Dragon first — it pairs with Craks, and you're leaving Craks behind, so it's off-suit for your Bam hand (and a lone single with no pair). Then let go of the Craks over the next turns. Jokers are almost never discarded — hold them unless you're folding.

3 exposures = full defense mode. Stop trying to win and start discarding only guaranteed-safe tiles. Break your own forming groups if needed — your pairs are now a source of safe discards, not future Pungs. Hold your Jokers while you still have safe tiles — but if you're folding and out of safe discards, a Joker is actually the safest throw in the game, since no one can ever call it.

Yes — all conditions are met: it's your turn, you have the exact real tile the Joker is standing for, and you haven't discarded yet. Hand the 8 Bam to the opponent and take the Joker.

East Wind + 2 Craks. The East Wind is a lone wind tile (dead weight) and the Craks don't fit your Bam direction. The Green Dragon pair has value (dragons pair with Bams). The Joker is never passed. Never pass Bams when you're building Bams.

Late-game calling is completely different from early-game. You're already committed to a hand and the wall is running out. Passing on a tile you need now could mean never seeing it again. The principle: wide early, narrow late.

The suit nobody is discarding is the hot suit — someone is collecting it. Discarding Dots is risky because you could be feeding that player exactly what they need. Craks are the cold suit: everyone is dumping them, so they're safer.

Calling commits you. Once the Pung is exposed, you can't rebuild toward a hand that doesn't use 5 Crak. Early in the game, flexibility beats commitment. Wait until you've narrowed down to one primary candidate before calling.

The 4-step recovery: stop, speak up immediately, describe factually. If you correct it before any player acts on the wrong name, you usually escape clean. Hiding it risks the misnamed-discard penalty (NMJL® Article 67) — the most expensive mistake in the game if Mahjong is called on it.

The 9 Dot is the only tile that fits neither of your forming suits. Discard tiles that fit none of your candidate hands first. It's isolated and useless to you.

Jokers can substitute in any group of 3 or more identical tiles — so either of the Pungs-in-progress works, completing them at 3 tiles. Jokers can never be used in a pair, full stop. That's the pair rule.

Mahjong is the one exception to the "calls are for groups of 3+" rule. If that one tile completes your entire winning hand — even if it's just completing a pair — you can call it.

Per NMJL® etiquette, you don't declare your own hand dead. Stay quiet and keep playing defensively — discard only safe tiles. Once another player notices and calls it, you stop drawing and discarding, stay seated, and still pay the winner if someone else completes their hand.

The East Wind and 3 Craks are all dead weight — none fit a Bam hand. Discard the East Wind first (a lone wind is dangerous to hold), then the Craks over the next turns. The Green Dragon pair has potential (dragons pair with suits). The Joker is never a discard.

Both the 3 Crak and 7 Dot are junk — neither fits your all-Bam hand. Discard them over your next two turns (the hotter tile first). Hold your Jokers, and don't break your Bam groups.

Never pass a Joker. Jokers are the most valuable tiles in the game and cannot legally be passed in the Charleston. The North Wind and 9 Dot are both fine junk to pass.

No. The pair rule is absolute: Jokers can never substitute in a pair. You need two real 9 Dots. This is the #1 Joker mistake beginners make.

Concealed is NOT a multiplier. The card already gives concealed hands a higher printed value. Just use the number on the card.

Once your hand is officially declared dead by another player, you stop drawing and discarding. You stay at the table and still pay the winner if someone else completes their hand. (You shouldn't declare your own hand dead — keep playing defensively until another player notices.)

Self-draw means all three players pay double: 25¢ × 2 = 50¢ each.

When a player wins on a discard, the discarder pays the winner 2× the hand value, while the other two players pay only 1×.

The number printed next to each hand on the NMJL® card — the base amount each losing player pays the winner. Harder hands carry higher values, and concealed versions are priced higher than comparable exposed ones. Bonuses like discarder-pays-double and the jokerless double are applied on top of this printed number.

The official NMJL® rule covering the jokerless bonus: a winning hand with no jokers pays double the normal value. Exception: Singles & Pairs hands can't use jokers at all, so they don't get the extra double — their higher printed value already reflects it. (The exact article number varies by rulebook edition — check your current NMJL® card.)

A winning hand with no jokers pays double. Stacks with the discarder / self-draw bonus. Exception: Singles & Pairs hands already have the bonus baked into the printed value — don't double them again.

Drawing your winning tile from the wall yourself, with no discard involved. All three other players pay double.

A hand where the wall runs out before anyone calls Mahjong. No payments are made. Reshuffle and redeal.

Discarder pays double (×2), then jokerless doubles again (×2). 25¢ × 2 × 2 = $1.00.

The discarder pays double: 25¢ × 2 = 50¢. The other two players each pay 25¢.

East rolls the dice and breaks their own wall. The dice total tells you how many stacks in from the right end to split. The opening point is where East draws the first tiles.

Pushing the next wall forward and slightly diagonal so it can be dealt from when the current wall runs out.

Strictly speaking, there is no dealer in American Mahjong — each player takes their own tiles from the wall. The role other games give a dealer belongs to East: East breaks the wall, draws first, starts with the extra 14th tile, and makes the first discard, which officially starts the game.

The player who starts with the extra 14th tile and makes the first discard — the official start of the game. East breaks the wall and draws first. The other seats are also named by direction, though those terms are rarely used outside tournaments. After each hand, East rotates to the right (counter-clockwise).

The shuffle. All 152 tiles are placed face-down and mixed around by hand before building the wall. Also called "washing."

Sliding your wall forward toward the center of the table so it can be drawn from. When the current wall runs out during the deal, the next player to the left (clockwise) pushes their wall in. See also Curtsy.

The long flat arm attached to (or paired with) your rack, used to slide your wall of tiles toward the center of the table without knocking it over. American sets usually include four. They're not required — you can push the wall by hand — but they keep the wall straight and save your back.

Placing a drawn tile onto your rack. After someone discards, the next player should pause briefly before racking to give others a chance to call.

The 4-sided structure of stacked tiles in the middle of the table at the start of the game. Each side is built by one player: 19 tiles long, 2 high.

Two same-suit exposures = they're building a same-suit hand. Stop feeding them tiles in that suit.

3+ exposures means an opponent could be as little as one tile from winning. Only discard tiles you are certain they cannot use.

Almost never — treat every discard as carrying some risk. You get closest to safe when every other copy of a tile is already visible on the table (in discards or exposures): then no one can call it for a Pung, Kong, or Quint. Even then, a player could still be waiting to win on it as a single, so no discard is ever a total guarantee. Short of that, you can only lower the risk — by reading exposures, watching what each player passes on, and favoring tiles similar to ones already ignored.

Folding means you stop trying to win and start discarding only the safest tiles you can. You keep playing — you just don't want to be the one who feeds the winner.

A hand category on the NMJL® card built entirely from odd-numbered tiles (1s, 3s, 5s, 7s, 9s). Specific 13579 hands change yearly, but the category name always means odd-only.

A hand category on the NMJL® card built entirely from even-numbered tiles (2s, 4s, 6s, 8s). Specific 2468 hands change yearly, but the category name always means even-only. Frequently includes Soaps (which act as 0s).

A hand category on the NMJL® card built around 3s, 6s, and 9s. Specific 369 hands change yearly, but the category name always restricts you to those three numbers.

One of the 2–3 hands on the card you're building toward early in the game. The flexibility curve narrows from 3 → 2 → 1 candidates as the game progresses.

The annual card published by the National Mah Jongg League® listing every legal winning hand for that year, with its value, suit restrictions, and whether it's exposed (X) or concealed (C). Required to play officially.

A hand category on the NMJL® card built from numbers in numerical order (e.g. 3-4-5 or 5-6-7). The card tells you the pattern (FF 11 222 333 4444); you choose which consecutive numbers to use within the constraint shown in parentheses.

A tile is dead for your hand when enough copies are already visible (in discards and exposures) that you can no longer collect what you need — if you need a Pung but three copies are on the table, your natural Pung is gone (though a Joker can still fill a group of three or more). A live tile still has enough unseen copies. Counting dead tiles is the heart of reading the table.

Shifting from playing to win to playing to not lose. You keep playing — drawing and discarding — but choose only the safest possible discards because an opponent is dangerously close to winning.

A suit that nobody at the table is discarding. Usually means at least one opponent is hoarding it. Avoid feeding the hot suit.

A hand category built around the same number across multiple suits (e.g. groups of 5 Crak, 5 Bam, 5 Dot). Usually visible on the card under "Like Numbers."

The National Mah Jongg League® — the organization that publishes the official annual card and standardized American Mahjong rules.

Needing exactly one more tile to complete your hand. Being one away is when calling matters most — and when opponents' defenses go up. Many players say they are waiting, or that a hand is set; it all means one tile from Mahjong.

Switching from your primary candidate hand to a backup mid-game when the primary stalls (e.g., key tiles are dead in the discard pile or opponents are racing ahead). A successful pivot keeps you in the running; a poorly-timed pivot wastes draws. Best done before the wall gets short.

A category of hands on the NMJL® card built around 5-tile groups (Quints). Because only 4 copies of each number, wind, or dragon tile exist, a Quint of those needs at least one Joker. Specific Quints hands change yearly, but the category always features Quints prominently.

Tracking which tiles have been discarded or exposed so you know what's still "live." Once 3 of a tile are visible, the 4th is almost always safe to discard — only a joker-backed call (a 2-joker Pung, 3-joker Kong, or 4-joker Quint) is still possible.

A hand category that requires all groups to be in a single suit (all Bams, all Craks, or all Dots). Listed on the card as "Same Color" or similar.

A hand category made entirely of pairs and single tiles. Jokers cannot be used anywhere in a Singles & Pairs hand. The jokerless bonus is already baked into the printed value, so don't double these at payout.

The information leak when an opponent calls and exposes. Every exposure tells you their suit focus, number focus, and likely hand category. Your defense depends on reading them.

A category of hands on the NMJL® card built primarily from the four Winds (N, E, W, S) and three Dragons (Red, Green, Soap). Often combined with Flowers, and some lines add a paired number group — the numbers can vary, so check the parentheses.

A hand built around the digits of the current year (e.g. 2-0-2-6 for 2026). Often the easiest place for a beginner to start, since the digits are usually easy to spot in your starting tiles.

Once 3 of a tile are out of play, no one can pung it without 2 Jokers. The 4th copy is almost always safe to throw.

What an opponent isn't throwing is more revealing than what they are. The 'hot' suit is the one nobody is dumping.

Yes — and this surprises almost everyone. The Red Dragon pairs with Craks, the Green Dragon with Bams, and the Soap (White Dragon) with Dots. When the card asks for dragons that match a suit, this is the pairing it means. Winds, Flowers, and Jokers are the tiles that truly have no suit.

The 1 Bam usually shows a bird — a peacock, sparrow, or rooster — instead of a bamboo stalk, so it's the tile beginners most often mistake for a Flower. Flowers show plants, seasons, or scenes and are usually numbered or marked differently by the set maker. Quick check: if there's a bird on it, it's the 1 Bam.

There are 8 Flowers — each unique, but all interchangeable at the table.

There are 8 Jokers, and they're the most powerful tiles in the game.

108 numbers + 16 winds + 12 dragons + 8 flowers + 8 jokers = 152 tiles.

The 1 Bam is the famous 'bird' tile — almost every set draws it as a bird instead of a stalk.

A full American Mahjong set has 152 playing tiles: three suits of 1–9 with 4 copies each (108), 4 copies each of the four Winds (16), 4 copies each of the three Dragons (12), 8 Flowers, and 8 Jokers. If a set has only 144 tiles, it's missing the Jokers — that's a Chinese-style set.

One of the three suits, depicted with bamboo stalks. Numbered 1–9, 4 copies of each in the set.

A common nickname for the 1 Bam tile, which depicts a bird (often a peacock, sparrow, or rooster) instead of a single bamboo stalk. It looks similar to a Flower at first glance — if there's a bird on it, it's a 1 Bam.

One of the three suits, marked with the Chinese character for the number. Numbered 1–9, 4 copies of each in the set.

One of the three suits, depicted as round circles or coins. Numbered 1–9, 4 copies of each in the set.

Each Dragon belongs to a suit: Red Dragon with Craks, Green Dragon with Bams, and Soap (White Dragon) with Dots. When a hand on the card asks for dragons that match a suit, this pairing is what it means. Winds, Flowers, and Jokers, by contrast, belong to no suit at all.

Three types: Red Dragon (中), Green Dragon (發), and White Dragon / Soap (blank or framed). 4 copies of each.

There are 8 Flower tiles in the set. They usually show different pictures (sometimes called 4 flowers + 4 seasons), but at the American table they're all just "Flowers" — any Flower works as any other, and they belong to no suit. They're regular playing tiles that show up as F in specific hands on the card.

The wild-card tile. There are 8 in the set. Jokers may substitute in any group of 3+ identical tiles (Pungs, Kongs, Quints), but never in a pair or single. Cannot be passed in the Charleston, cannot be called from the discard pile.

Mnemonic for the four Wind tiles: North, East, West, South — the order they're commonly listed in hands on the card. Play itself simply moves to your right around the table, starting with East.

The tile holder in front of each player. Has a ledge where your tiles sit facing you (hidden from others) and a flat top area where exposed groups go when you call.

The everyday name for the White Dragon, which is either blank or shows a simple frame — like a bar of soap. It pulls double duty: it's a Dragon in Winds & Dragons hands, and it stands in as a zero in number-based hands like Year hands and 2468. When the card shows a 0, that means Soap.

Four types — East (東), South (南), West (西), North (北) — with 4 copies of each. Used in specific hands on the card and to mark seating positions.

Green Dragon goes with Bams, Red Dragon goes with Craks, and White Dragon (Soap) goes with Dots. You'll see these pairings on the card.

The three number suits are Bams (bamboo), Craks (characters), and Dots (circles).

Green Dragon goes with Bams.

Red Dragon goes with Craks.

White Dragon (Soap) goes with Dots.

Jokers can NEVER be used in singles or pairs — only in Pungs (3), Kongs (4), or Quints (5).

Joker exchanges trade specificity for flexibility. With a Joker she can fill in any missing tile in a group of 3+.

Self-draw = all three players pay 2× hand value. 30¢ × 2 = 60¢ each. Sara collects $1.80 total.

Hand commitment is the foundation of every other decision. Without picking a target, the discard, call, and joker decisions become impossible.

Always do the 2-second mental check before calling. A bad call kills your hand for the round.