Tiles & Terms

Clear visual references for mahjong tiles, symbols, suits, special tiles, abbreviations, and table terminology.

Use the sections and guides below to explore this subject in a clear, practical order.

Turn an unfamiliar tile set into a readable language

Tile recognition is the first speed barrier for most American mahjong beginners. The three numbered suits can be learned as parallel families: dots or circles, bams or bamboos, and craks or characters. Winds and dragons form the honor tiles, while flowers and jokers have special uses that depend on the hand and current rules.

This reference area is organized for quick lookup during practice. Tile pages explain appearance, alternate names, counts, and common confusion points. Terminology pages translate table language into plain English and distinguish similar terms such as pung, kong, quint, pair, exposure, and concealed hand.

The main tile families at a glance

Numbered suits

Dots, bams, and craks each run from one through nine. The same number can behave differently depending on the suit requirement shown on the card.

Winds and dragons

East, South, West, and North winds are distinct tiles. Red, green, and white dragons may connect to specific suits or appear as named groups on the card.

Flowers and jokers

Flowers are interchangeable unless a rule or card instruction says otherwise. Jokers substitute only where permitted and cannot simply replace any missing tile.