Riichi glossary
27 terms with example hands.
Tanyao (All Simples)
A winning hand with no terminals (1/9) or honor tiles.
234 Man
234 Pin
345 Sou
678 Sou
PairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Riichi (Ready declaration)
Declaring a closed ready hand by placing a 1000-point stick and locking the hand.
123 Man
456 Pin
789 Sou
Pon
PairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Pinfu (All sequences)
Four sequences and a two-sided wait pair; no triplets or honor pair.
234 Man345 Pin678 SouPairWaitEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Chiitoitsu (Seven pairs)
Seven distinct pairs — a special full hand shape.
Honitsu (Half flush)
One suit plus honors only; closed hands score more.
234 Man567 Man
刻
EastPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Ittsu (Straight)
Three sequential runs 123, 456, 789 in the same suit.
123 Man456 Man789 Man
234 PinPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Yaku
Scoring patterns required for a winning hand in riichi (at least one yaku).
123 Man456 Pin789 SouWhite
PairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Meld (Chi / Pon / Kan)
Open calls from discards: sequence, triplet, or quad.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouWhitePairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Tenpai (Ready)
One tile away from a complete winning hand.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouPonPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Dora
Bonus indicators that add han when matching tiles appear in your hand.
234 Man234 Pin345 Sou678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Furiten
Cannot win on a discard if you previously passed a winning tile you could have taken.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouSouth
PairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Ron (Win on discard)
Completing the hand by claiming another player's discard.
234 Man345 Pin678 SouPairWaitEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Tsumo (Self-draw)
Drawing the winning tile yourself from the wall.
234 Man234 Pin345 Sou678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Han
Primary scoring unit from yaku and dora; combines with fu for final points.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouWhitePairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Fu
Minor scoring adjustments from wait type, melds, and pair.
234 Man345 Pin678 SouPairWaitEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Yakuman
Limit hand — typically 8000 base points before bonuses.
234 Man567 Man刻EastPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Terminal (1 or 9)
End tiles in a suit; excluded from tanyao.
234 Man234 Pin345 Sou678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Honor tile
Winds and dragons — also excluded from tanyao.
234 Man234 Pin345 Sou678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Shanten
Distance from tenpai; 0 means ready, -1 means complete.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouPonPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Menzen (Closed hand)
No open melds — enables riichi and several yaku bonuses.
234 Man345 Pin678 SouPairWaitEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Yakuhai (Value honors)
Scoring with dragon pungs or seat/prevalent wind triplets.
Green dragon pung234 Man345 Pin678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Iipeikou (Identical sequences)
Two identical sequences in a closed hand — one han.
234 Man234 Man copy678 Pin
567 SouPair
Edit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Uradora
Hidden dora indicators revealed after a riichi win — extra han potential.
234 Man234 Pin345 Sou678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Akadora (Red five)
Red-suited 5 tiles that count as one han each when part of the winning hand.
234 Man234 Pin345 Sou678 SouPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Suji (Discard reading)
A defensive heuristic: after two consecutive discards in a suit, the middle tile is often safer.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouPonPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Genbutsu (Safe tile)
A discard that cannot be another player's winning tile because a copy is visible.
123 Man456 Pin789 SouSouthPairEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard → Betaori (Full fold)
Abandoning offense to discard only safe tiles until the hand ends.
234 Man345 Pin678 SouPairWaitEdit in hand generator →View pattern page →Open storyboard →
