How to use this tile quiz
Start with Flashcards. Look at the tile, say its name out loud, then tap Show answer. If you knew it, tap I knew it. If not, tap Still learning and the tile will come back a few cards later. Your progress is saved on this device, so you can stop and pick up where you left off.
Use the buttons at the top to study just one group, like Craks, which most beginners find hardest. When the flashcards feel easy, switch to the Timed quiz: you get 60 seconds to name as many tiles as you can. Prefer no pressure? Tick Relaxed mode and take all the time you need.
The three suits: Dots, Bams and Craks
Most of the tiles in your set belong to one of three suits. Each suit runs from 1 to 9, and there are four copies of every tile.
- Dots (also called circles or balls). Just count the circles. The 1 Dot is one big decorated circle.
- Bams, short for bamboo. Count the green sticks. The famous exception is the 1 Bam, which is a bird.
- Craks, short for characters. The top character is a Chinese number and the red character underneath, 萬, means "ten thousand". Most American sets also print a small number in the corner.
The Crak numbers are worth a minute of practice. One, two and three are simply one, two and three lines (一 二 三). Four (四) looks like a little window, five (五) has a zig-zag, and nine (九) looks a bit like a hook. After a few rounds you will read them as easily as the numbers on a clock.
Winds and Dragons
There are four Winds: North, East, West and South, with four of each. Each shows a Chinese character, and nearly every American set also prints a big N, E, W or S in the corner. When a hand needs all four, players often remember them as the word "NEWS".
The three Dragons each "belong" to a suit, which matters when you read the card. The Red Dragon (中) goes with Craks, the Green Dragon (發) goes with Bams, and the White Dragon, nicknamed Soap, goes with Dots. Soap also works as a zero in hands that spell out a year.
Flowers and Jokers
An American set has eight Flowers. The pictures vary a lot between sets, with seasons, plants or even birds, but on the card any Flower matches any other Flower. You do not need to tell them apart.
The eight Jokers are what make the American game special. A Joker can stand in for any tile in a group of three or more, such as three or four of the same tile. A Joker can never be used in a single tile or a pair. Read more in our guide to how Jokers work.
Why learning the tiles first pays off
At your first game night, the hardest part is not strategy. It is keeping up while you sort your tiles, read the card and pass during the Charleston. If you can name every tile instantly, you free up your attention for everything else, and you will feel far more relaxed at the table.
A good routine is ten minutes a day for three or four days: flashcards for one suit, then a timed quiz with all tiles. Then move on to the Charleston simulator to practice passing, and read our guide to reading the card.
Your set may look a little different. Tile art varies by maker. The tiles above are drawn by firstmahj, but every set uses the same suits, numbers and symbols, so what you learn here carries over to any American set.
