mah-jongg

American  

[mah-jawng, -jong, -zhawng, -zhong] / ˈmɑˈdʒɔŋ, -ˈdʒɒŋ, -ˈʒɔŋ, -ˈʒɒŋ /

Or mah-jong

noun

1. a game of Chinese origin usually played by four persons with 144 dominolike pieces or tiles marked in suits, counters, and dice, the object being to build a winning combination of pieces.

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verb (used without object)

1. to win a game of mah-jongg.

Etymology

Origin of mah-jongg

1920–25; < dialectal Chinese; compare Guangdong dial. màh-jéuk, Chinese máquè literally, sparrow (depicted on the first tile of a set), equivalent to má hemp + què bird

Example Sentences

The family room is the only space with a television, but with a mah-jongg table, the TV hardly seems necessary.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026

He jokes that he learned to play mah-jongg by “taking money from the aunties.”

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 12, 2023

Lin hopes that one day, the group can collaborate with the Chinese American Museum to further educate players on the history of mah-jongg and Chinese Americans.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 12, 2023

While there were players drinking baijiu and gossiping as they shuffled tiles — traditional mah-jongg moments — a modern “third culture kid” spirit enveloped the event.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 12, 2023

“Yes, and the taxicabs and the dinners. And mah-jongg all night sometimes.”

From "Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution" by Ji-li Jiang