Riichi Mahjong Glossary

The suit depicted with Chinese numerals for 10,000. One of three numbered suits with tiles 1-9.

The suit showing circular coin designs. One of three numbered suits with tiles 1-9.

The suit depicting bamboo sticks. The 1-sou (bird) is unique. One of three numbered suits with tiles 1-9.

The seven honor tiles: four winds and three dragons. Cannot form sequences, only triplets.

The four wind tiles: East, South, West, North. Worth 1 han when matching seat or round wind.

White (haku), Green (hatsu), and Red (chun) dragons. A triplet of any is worth 1 han.

East wind tile. The starting dealer position and first round wind.

South wind tile. The second round wind in a full game.

West wind tile. Third seat position counter-clockwise from East.

North wind tile. Fourth seat position in the rotation.

The white dragon, shown as a blank or framed tile. Also called 'blank' ('shiro') or 'soap'.

The green dragon, displaying the character for 'development' or 'prosperity'. Also called 'Ao' or 'green dragon'.

The red dragon, showing the character for 'center' or 'China'. Often worth 1 han as yakuhai.

The 1 and 9 of each numbered suit. Key to yaku like junchan and chinroutou.

Numbered tiles 2-8 in any suit. A tanyao hand contains only simples.

Collective term for 1s, 9s, and all honor tiles. Central to many yaku.

A set of three consecutive numbered tiles in the same suit (e.g., 2-3-4 man).

A set of three identical tiles. Can be formed with any tile type.

A set of four identical tiles. Requires declaring kan to form.

Two identical tiles. Every standard winning hand needs exactly one pair (the head).

Another word for the pair in a winning hand. Determines some fu points.

A group of tiles forming a valid set: sequence, triplet, or quad.

Bonus tiles adding 1 han each. The dora indicator shows the tile before the dora.

Extra dora revealed under the indicator after winning with riichi. Adds more han potential.

Red-colored 5s worth 1 han each. Standard sets include at least one red 5 per suit.

Additional dora indicator revealed when someone declares kan.

1 han. Declare when one tile away from winning with a closed hand. Costs 1000 points.

1 han. Win by drawing your own winning tile with a closed hand.

1 han. Hand contains only tiles 2-8, no terminals or honors.

1 han. Closed hand with four sequences, valueless pair, and open-ended wait.

1 han. Two identical sequences in the same suit. Requires closed hand.

1 han per set. Triplet/quad of dragons, seat wind, or round wind.

2 han closed, 1 han open. Same sequence in all three suits.

2 han closed, 1 han open. Sequences 123, 456, 789 in the same suit.

2 han closed, 1 han open. Every set and the pair includes a terminal or honor.

2 han. Seven different pairs. No duplicate pairs allowed. 25 fu regardless of contents.

2 han. Four triplets/quads and a pair. No sequences allowed.

2 han. Three triplets formed without calling. The fourth set can be open.

2 han. Triplets of the same number in all three suits.

2 han. Three quads (kan) in one hand. Rare and difficult.

2 han (with toitoi). Only terminals and honors, no simples.

2 han. Two dragon triplets and a dragon pair. Comes with 2 yakuhai.

3 han closed, 2 han open. One suit plus honors only.

3 han closed, 2 han open. Every set and pair includes a terminal. No honors.

3 han. Two sets of iipeikou. Requires closed hand. Cannot combine with chiitoitsu.

6 han closed, 5 han open. Entire hand is one numbered suit only.

Yakuman. One of each terminal and honor, plus one duplicat as head.

Yakuman. Four triplets all formed without borrowing tiles (i.e. must win by tsumo unless tanki wait).

Yakuman. Triplets/quads of all three dragons.

Yakuman. Three wind triplets and a wind pair.

Double Yakuman. Triplets/quads of all four winds.

Yakuman. Entire hand consists of honor tiles only.

Yakuman. Entire hand consists of terminal tiles (1s and 9s) only.

Yakuman. Hand uses only green tiles: 23468s and hatsu (only green tiles).

Yakuman. 1112345678999 in one suit plus any tile of that suit. Closed only.

Yakuman. Four quads in one hand. Possibly the rarest standard yakuman.

Yakuman. Dealer wins on their initial 14-tile draw. Extremely rare.

Yakuman. Non-dealer wins on their first draw before any calls.

Non-dealer wins on a discard before their first turn. Value varies by ruleset.

2 han. Declare riichi on your first turn before any calls. Worth extra han.

1 han. Win within one turn cycle after declaring riichi, with no calls interrupting.

1 han. Win by self-draw on the last drawable tile from the live wall.

1 han. Win by calling ron on the final discarded tile of the hand before an exhaustive draw.

1 han. Win by self-draw immediately on the replacement tile after declaring kan.

1 han. Win by calling ron on a tile used to upgrade an open pon to an open kan.

House rule. Mangan payment. All your discards are terminals/honors, and none were called (rules may require you to be menzen as well).

The act of drawing a tile from the wall. Also the call when winning by self-draw.

The act of discarding a tile after drawing. Must be placed in the discard pond in order.

The act of drawing and discarding (any) tiles; the most common action in the game.

Calling a winning tile from another player's discard. Discarder pays full value. Ron takes priority over all other calls or actions (including penalties in some cases), unless the ron call was maliciously delayed or invalid.

A winning hand as well as the act of winning it. Achieved by completing a valid hand with at least one yaku.

Take a discarded tile to complete a sequence. Only from the player to your left.

Take a discarded tile to complete a triplet. Can call from any player. Pon takes priority over chi, unless the pon call was maliciously delayed.

Declare four of a kind. Reveals a new dora. Three types: ankan (closed), minkan (open), kakan (upgraded). Kan takes priority over chi, unless the kan call was maliciously delayed.

Declare kan with four tiles you drew yourself. Still counts as a menzen (closed) group.

Declare kan by calling a discarded tile when holding three. Opens the hand.

Upgrade an existing pon to a kan by adding the fourth tile. Can be robbed (chankan).

General term for calling tiles (chii, pon, kan). Opens the hand.

A hand with no called tiles. Enables riichi and keeps some yaku at full value.

Cannot ron if any of your waiting tiles is in your own discard pile. Must tsumo instead.

One tile away from completing a winning hand. Required to declare riichi.

Not in tenpai when a hand ends in a draw. Must pay to those in tenpai.

The tile(s) that would complete your hand. Different wait patterns have different names.

Waiting on either end of a sequence (e.g., 34 waiting on 2 or 5). Best wait type.

Waiting for the middle tile of a sequence (e.g., 35 waiting on 4). One out.

Waiting on 3 for 12 or 7 for 89. One out, considered a bad wait.

Waiting on either of two pairs to become a triplet. Four total outs.

Waiting for one tile to complete the pair. Three outs maximum.

A 4-tile tanki wait (e.g., 2345 waiting on 2 or 5 for the pair).

The initial tiles dealt to each player. Dealer gets 14, others get 13.

Number of tile changes needed to reach tenpai. 0-shanten means tenpai.

One tile away from tenpai. One more useful tile will make you ready.

A hand ends with no winner and the wall is exhausted. Tenpai payments occur.

Deliberately discarding a winning tile to another player for strategic reasons.

Abandoning your hand to avoid dealing in. Discard only safe tiles.

To give up on winning the current hand and play defensively.

Discarding a tile from your hand rather than the one just drawn.

Immediately discarding the tile you just drew. Indicates a fixed hand.

The tile walls built at the start of each hand. Players draw from the wall.

Also 'King's Tiles'. The 14-tile section containing dora indicators and kan replacement tiles.

The tile drawn from the dead wall after declaring kan.

Any tile that has been discarded. Forms the discard pond.

The area where each player places their discards in order.

A tile already in a riichi player's discard pond. Guaranteed safe against them.

Tiles 3 apart that share waits (1-4, 2-5, 3-6, etc.). Used for defense.

When all 4 of a tile are visible, blocking certain waits. Used for defense.

Tiles that are dangerous because of early discards. Opposite of suji logic.

Discarding an otherwise useful tile earlier than expected, usually before it becomes dangerous later. (E.g. 5 from 556)

Also 'fan'. The main multiplier for hand value. Each yaku and dora adds han.

Base points from hand composition. Added for triplets, waits, and winning method.

5 han (or 4 han/40fu, 3 han/70fu). 8000 points for non-dealer, 12000 for dealer.

6-7 han. 12000 points for non-dealer, 18000 for dealer.

8-10 han. 16000 points for non-dealer, 24000 for dealer.

11-12 han. 24000 points for non-dealer, 36000 for dealer.

13+ han or special hands. 32000 points for non-dealer, 48000 for dealer.

The East seat player. Pays and receives 1.5x. Stays dealer if they win or tenpai in an exhaustive draw.

Any player who is not the dealer. South, West, and North seats.

Bonus of 300 points per honba. Increases when dealer repeats or draws occur.

Uncollected 1000-point riichi sticks. Winner takes all from the table.

3000 points split among players in tenpai when a hand ends in a draw.

A rule variant with no scoring caps. Hands can be worth millions of points.

End-game bonus/penalty. Common is 10-20: 1st/2nd gain, 3rd/4th lose points.

Points above 25000 collected from all players. Goes to first place.

A rule violation resulting usually in a mangan-level payment to all opponents.

Tenpai in shape but with no valid yaku if you win. Usually still counts for noten payments.

When the dealer stays dealer for another hand. Occurs on dealer win or tenpai.

When a player drops below 0 points. Usually ends the game immediately.

Said at the start of a game. Polite way to begin, meaning 'please treat me well.'

Said at the end of a game. Thanks everyone for playing, acknowledges shared effort.

Proper manners at the table regarding attitude. Includes speech, manners, sportsmanship.

Proper manners at the table regarding actions. Includes speed of play, handling tiles, and game progression.

Having your yaku minimum already guaranteed within your own hand and not depending on discards. Some rules require this.

Opposite of Sakizuke. Having a potential yaku that may not be valid yet, and depends on discarded tiles. Some rules forbid this.

Calling a tile then discarding the same tile or opposite end of the same sequence tile. Usually prohibited.

The perceived momentum or luck flow in a game. A superstitious but common concept.

How tiles are mixed and dealt. Proper rotation is part of good manners.

The process of determining starting seats. Usually done by drawing wind tiles.

A new player's (shinki) first day at a club or parlor. Regulars often treat newcomers nicely.

Private side bet between two players. Separate from the main game scoring.

Variant played with 3 players. Usually removes the 2-8 of one suit.

A manga-style variant with transparent tiles. Most tiles are visible to all.

Being in tenpai without declaring riichi. Sacrifices uradora for flexibility.

Same as damaten. Hiding your ready state from opponents.

A hon itsu with no other yaku (difficult and cheap).

A wait where all copies of the winning tile are already visible. 0 outs.

Going below 0 points and busting out of the game. Ends the match.

A wait with only 1 out remaining. Waiting on a tile with 3 already visible.

Phrase used when making a temporary choice. 'For now, I'll discard this.'

Suffix meaning 'only.' Riichi nomi = riichi-only hand with no other yaku.

Chasing riichi. Declaring riichi after another player already has. Also 'Okkake.'

Top or bust strategy across the whole hand, pushing everything.

Exclaimed when a key tile appears, especially a winning tile. Bad manners to replace ron with this.

When a discard seems risky or suspicious. 'That tile smells dangerous.'

A tile or situation with hidden potential. Borrowed from Go terminology.

First place. 'Going for top' means aiming to win the game.

Fourth place. Short for 'last.' Avoiding las is key strategy.

Strategy to pass 4th place to another player through deal-ins or clever play.

Reading opponents' hands and intentions from their discards and actions.

Overall game strategy. Long-term thinking about placement and points.

Short-term tactical decisions. What to discard, when to call, etc.

Short for akadora. 'I have aka' means holding a red five.

Aggressive playstyle. Pushing forward without regard for defense.

Completely abandoning offense for safety.

A quick hand reaching tenpai early. 'Their hand is fast' = be careful.

A slow developing hand. Takes many turns to reach tenpai.

A direct hit. Dealing in right after a riichi declaration.

Responding to opponents' actions. Reading and reacting to riichi or calls.

A riichi wait designed to trap opponents using suji logic against them.

When many bamboo tiles appear early. Field is rich in souzu.

When many circle tiles appear early. Field is rich in pinzu.

When many character tiles appear early. Field is rich in manzu.

The player sitting to your right. They discard before you.

The player sitting directly across from you.

The player sitting to your left. You can call chii from them only.

Your current seat wind. Changes as the deal passes.

The current round's wind. East round or South round.

Slang for double riichi. Declaring on your first turn.

Defense theory about tiles 4 apart from early discards being dangerous.

Holding tiles another player needs to slow their hand development.