American Mahjong Glossary: Every Term You Need to Know
A
Across — The player sitting directly opposite you at the table. Also refers to the second pass in the First Charleston and the second pass in the Second Charleston.
Atomic — A style of play where a player aggressively calls discards and makes exposures early, signaling confidence (or bluffing) about their chosen hand.
B
Bam — One of the three suits in American Mahjong, also called Bamboo. Tiles are numbered 1 through 9. The 1 Bam is sometimes called the “Bird Bam” because of the bird illustration on the tile.
Big Hand — A hand worth a high point value on the NMJL card. Big hands are harder to complete but pay out more when you win.
Bird Bam — A nickname for the 1 Bam tile, which traditionally features a bird (often a peacock or sparrow) instead of a single bamboo stick.
Blind Pass — During the Charleston, passing tiles you just received without looking at them or incorporating them into your hand. Allowed on certain passes when you don’t have three tiles you want to give away.
Break the Wall — The act of splitting the wall of tiles at the start of a round to determine where dealing begins. One player rolls dice, and the count determines where the wall is broken.
C
Calling — Claiming a tile that another player has just discarded. You can call a tile to complete a pung, kong, quint, sextet, or to win (Mahjong). You cannot call a tile for a pair unless it completes your hand.
Charleston — The structured tile-passing exchange that happens before gameplay in American Mahjong. Consists of a mandatory First Charleston, an optional Second Charleston, and an optional Courtesy Pass. Unique to the American version of the game. Learn more in our complete Charleston guide.
Cold Tile — A tile that is very unlikely to be needed by any other player, making it safe to discard.
Concealed Hand — A hand marked with “C” on the NMJL card that must be completed without calling any discarded tiles (except the final winning tile). Concealed hands are typically worth more points.
Courtesy Pass — An optional exchange of zero to three tiles with the player across from you, done after the Charleston is complete. Both players must agree on the number of tiles to exchange.
Crak — One of the three suits in American Mahjong, also called Characters. Tiles are numbered 1 through 9. Each tile shows a Chinese character along with its number.
D
Dead Hand — A hand that can no longer win, usually because a player made an incorrect exposure or broke a rule. The player with a dead hand must continue to draw and discard for the rest of the round but cannot win.
Dead Tile — A tile that has already been discarded and is no longer available from the wall. Knowing which tiles are dead helps with strategy.
Dead Wall — Not commonly used in American Mahjong. In some other variants, a section of the wall is set aside and not drawn from during normal play.
Discard — The tile a player places face-up on the table after drawing. Other players have a brief window to call the discard before play continues.
Dot — One of the three suits in American Mahjong, also called Circles. Tiles are numbered 1 through 9. Each tile shows the corresponding number of dots.
Dragon — Honor tiles that come in three types: Red Dragon, Green Dragon, and White Dragon (also called Soap). There are four of each in a standard set.
E
East — One of the four Wind tiles. Also refers to the starting dealer position. The player in the East seat deals first and receives 14 tiles instead of 13.
Exposure — A group of tiles placed face-up on your rack after calling a discard. Once tiles are exposed, they cannot be rearranged or returned to your hand. Exposures give other players information about what hand you’re pursuing.
F
Flower — A special category of tile in American Mahjong. There are eight flower tiles in a set, and they function as their own group, not belonging to any suit. Flowers can be used in pungs, kongs, quints, and sextets.
G
Ghost — A placeholder for a missing fourth player. Some groups play with three players and leave one seat empty, calling the absent player the “Ghost” or sometimes “Bob” or “Sally.” The Ghost’s tiles are dealt and set aside.
Green Dragon — One of the three Dragon tiles. Sometimes marked with the letter “G” on the NMJL card.
H
Hand — Refers to either the tiles a player is currently holding, or a specific winning pattern listed on the NMJL card.
Hot Tile — A tile that another player is likely waiting for. Discarding a hot tile is risky because it might give someone else the win.
J
Joker — A wildcard tile unique to American Mahjong. There are eight Jokers in a set. A Joker can substitute for any tile in a group of three or more (pung, kong, quint, or sextet), but it cannot be used in a pair. Jokers are one of the biggest differences between American and other versions of Mahjong.
Joker Exchange — A strategic move where you swap a natural tile from your hand for a Joker in another player’s exposure. The natural tile must match the tiles in the exposure. This is only allowed after you’ve drawn a tile (either from the wall or by calling a discard) and before you discard.
K
Kong — A group of four identical tiles. On the NMJL card, this appears as four of the same tile in a row (e.g., “1 1 1 1”). Jokers can substitute in a kong.
M
Mahjong — The winning call. When a player completes a valid hand from the NMJL card, they declare “Mahjong!” and reveal their tiles. Also the name of the game itself.
Mah Jongg — An alternate spelling commonly used in the American Mahjong community. The National Mah Jongg League uses this spelling. Both “Mahjong” and “Mah Jongg” refer to the same game.
N
Natural Tile — Any tile that is not a Joker. When making a Joker exchange, you must offer a natural tile that matches the exposed group.
NMJL — The National Mah Jongg League, the organization that publishes the official card of winning hands for American Mahjong each year. Founded in 1937.
NMJL Card — The official list of valid winning hands, updated annually. Required for play. Each hand on the card shows a specific combination of tiles and its point value. See our guide on understanding the NMJL card for more detail.
North — One of the four Wind tiles. Abbreviated as “N” on the NMJL card.
O
Open Hand — A hand that allows exposures (calling discarded tiles). Most hands on the NMJL card are open hands. The opposite of a concealed hand.
P
Pair — Two identical tiles. Pairs are part of many hands on the NMJL card. Jokers cannot be used in a pair.
Pick — Drawing a tile from the wall. Sometimes called a “draw.”
Pung — A group of three identical tiles. On the NMJL card, this appears as three of the same tile in a row (e.g., “1 1 1”). Jokers can substitute in a pung.
Q
Quint — A group of five identical tiles. Since there are only four of any natural tile in a set, at least one Joker is required to complete a quint. Quints are unique to American Mahjong.
R
Rack — The wooden or plastic holder where players organize their tiles during the game. The top shelf of the rack is used for exposures. Each player has their own rack.
Red Dragon — One of the three Dragon tiles. Abbreviated as “R” on the NMJL card.
ROLLOR — A mnemonic for remembering the full Charleston passing sequence: Right, Over (across), Left, Left, Over (across), Right.
S
Sextet — A group of six identical tiles. Requires at least two Jokers. Not common on every year’s NMJL card, but appears in some years.
Singles and Pairs — A category on the NMJL card featuring concealed hands made up of only single tiles and pairs, with no groups of three or more. These hands cannot use Jokers.
Soap — A common nickname for the White Dragon tile, because the tile is either blank or has a rectangular border that looks like a bar of soap.
South — One of the four Wind tiles. Abbreviated as “S” on the NMJL card.
Suit — The three main categories of numbered tiles: Craks, Bams, and Dots. Each suit contains tiles numbered 1 through 9, with four of each tile in a standard set.
T
Table Rules — House rules that a group agrees on before playing. These might cover topics like minimum point thresholds for winning, penalties for incorrect exposures, or whether the Second Charleston is always played. Table rules vary widely and are not part of the official NMJL rules.
Tile — The playing pieces in Mahjong, similar to cards in a card game. An American Mahjong set has 166 tiles total.
W
Wall — The arrangement of face-down tiles at the start of each round. Each player builds a section of the wall in front of them, two tiles high and typically 19 tiles long. Players draw tiles from the wall during gameplay.
West — One of the four Wind tiles. Abbreviated as “W” on the NMJL card.
White Dragon — One of the three Dragon tiles. Also called Soap. Sometimes represented as “0” (zero) on the NMJL card.
Wind — A category of honor tiles: North, East, South, and West. There are four of each Wind tile in a set. Winds are used in many hands on the NMJL card.
Window of Opportunity — The brief moment after a tile is discarded when any player can call it. If no one calls within a reasonable time, play continues to the next player.
Y
Year — As in, the NMJL card changes every year. When someone mentions “this year’s card,” they’re referring to the current annual card published by the National Mah Jongg League.
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