II
CHINESE CHARACTERS
USED IN THE MAH JONG SET
A. Basic
Sixteen Chinese characters are used in the 136 tiles:
Chinese Pronounced Meaning Characters
| Chinese Characters | Pronounced | Meaning |
| Tung | East | |
| Nan | South | |
| Hsi | West | |
| Bei | North | |
|
|
Chung | Middle |
|
|
Fai | Prosperity |
| Wan |
10,000 |
|
| 1 | 1 | |
|
Er |
2 | |
| San | 3 | |
| Szu | 4 | |
| Wu | 5 | |
| Liu | 6 | |
| Ch'i | 7 | |
| Pa | 8 | |
| Chiu | 9 |
B. Additional
Chinese Characters used in extra tiles are:
| Chinese Characters | Pronounced | Meaning |
| Ch'un | Spring | |
| Hsia | Summer | |
| Chiu | Autumn | |
| Tung | Winter | |
| Mei | Plum | |
| Lan | Orchid | |
| Chu | Bamboo | |
| Ch?lt;/font> | Chrysanthemum |
Exercise I
Identify the following tiles:

You may make sets or pairs by either drawing from the wall (called self-drawing) or taking the needed ones discarded by other players. The rules for making a set or pair will be mentioned later.
B. Basic Chinese Words Used in Playing the Game
In playing Mah Jong, players use different Chinese words to indicate what they are doing. A beginner should know the following four Chinese words:
Chi: Taking a discard to make a sequence set or run.
Pong: Taking a discard to make a triplet.
Kong: Taking a discard to make a quartet.
Hu-le: To complete the game, or in an American expression, to make Mah Jong.
Exercise II
Below are three examples. Make a complete hand by rearranging tiles in each example.


|
Cover | Contents | Preface | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Answer to Exercises | Index |