The short answer
A winning hand must match one complete line on your current card, including its notes. Printed colors describe suit relationships; they are not permanently tied to Dots, Bams or Craks.
Try the card-reading lessonOn this page
Read one complete line
The annual National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) card is a menu of permitted winning hands. Choose a line and read all the way across it. Matching part of one line and part of another does not make a hand.
- Find the groups. Notice the numbers or letters, repeated tiles and spaces.
- Check the suit relationships. Look at which numbered groups share a printed color and which use different colors.
- Finish with the notes and marker. A parenthetical instruction or an X/C marker changes what is allowed.
You do not need to memorize the whole card before practicing. Start by explaining what one line requires, in your own words.
What the colors mean
For numbered tiles, the same printed color means the same suit. Different printed colors mean different suits. A color on the card does not always mean a particular suit in your tile set.
Original partial notation
One possible reading: the 3s and 7s are Dots; the 8s are Bams.
If the notes allow it, you could instead choose Craks for both the 3s and 7s, and Dots for the 8s. You could not put the 3s in one suit and the 7s in another while keeping this printed-color relationship.
Do not apply this numbered-tile shortcut to every symbol. Flowers, Winds and a White Dragon used as the number 0 are suitless. Read the actual note for any Dragon requirement.
Groups, letters and notes
Read the required tiles rather than assuming every printed block is one interchangeable group.
- Pair, pung, kongA pair has 2 identical tiles, a pung 3, and a kong 4. A quint has 5. A visually grouped run of different numbers can still be separate singles or pairs.
- F, D and 0F means Flower. D means Dragon; check the suit relationship and notes. A printed 0 uses the White Dragon, also called Soap.
- Read the whole instructionNotes can limit the suits, numbers or combinations you may choose. The line must work as a whole, not just resemble the picture.
Jokers do not erase these distinctions. A required single or pair still needs natural tiles. See the Joker examples.
X allows exposures. C keeps the hand concealed.
X · Exposed hand
You may make an allowed exposure when a discard completes the required group. X permits exposures; it does not require you to expose every group.
C · Concealed hand
Keep the hand concealed during play. You may still call its final natural tile for Mah Jongg when the complete hand matches the current card and its notes.
Neither marker makes every matching discard available. A single or pair cannot be called just to create an exposure. The final winning tile is a separate exception.
Your next small step
Turn the printed clue into tiles
The Read & Call chapter starts with suit relationships and X/C. Then its independent sets ask you to read new notation without answer hints.
Free to use. No account needed. Your answers stay in this browser.
A few common questions
Does a printed color always mean Dots, Bams or Craks?
No. It relates groups to each other. Keep repeated colors in the same suit and different colors in different suits for the numbered groups, then apply all notes.
Will these examples tell me whether my real hand wins?
No. They teach how to read a requirement. A real winning hand must match a complete line on your current card, including all notes and exposure rules.
Rules & further reading
Rule references checked October 21, 2026. The AMJA guides are explanatory resources from a separate association. Your current NMJL card and official updates still govern real play.
- AMJA: understanding the card
- AMJA: how to read the NMJL card
- NMJL: current card and official resources
Mahjong First is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by NMJL. These original examples do not reproduce an annual card or validate a complete hand.