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Definition of mahjong

mahjong

/ˈmɑːˌdʒɑːŋ/
mah · jong
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mahjong Lexical Profile

mahjong Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

A traditional Chinese game of skill, strategy, and calculation played, usually by four people, with 136 or 144 rectangular tiles engraved with various symbols and characters.

Example

"Every Sunday afternoon, the four grandmothers gathered around the square table to play several lively rounds of mahjong."

2

A single-player computer or tabletop puzzle game played by matching and removing pairs of identical free tiles from a multi-layered arrangement.

Example

"She relaxed on her flight by playing digital mahjong on her tablet."

• Nearby Words

mahi river
mahi-mahi
mahimahi
mahjong
mahogany
mahonia
maianthemum

Word Origin & Etymology

Borrowed in the early 20th century from Chinese 麻將 (májiàng), originally a dialectal word for 'sparrow,' likely in reference to the birdlike clattering sound of the tiles being shuffled or the bird imagery engraved on certain tiles.

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Mahjong. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/mahjong
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