tenpai
Tenpai is a term used in mahjong to describe the state of a hand that is one tile away from winning. In a standard hand, which consists of four melds (pungs or chows) and one pair, a tenpai hand can be completed with a single draw or discard that provides an agari tile, allowing a win.
The term originates from Japanese riichi mahjong, where tenpai (天牌) literally means a ready hand. It is
Tenpai is determined by examining potential winning tiles and the hand’s structure. The wait for the final
Shanten is a related concept that measures how far a hand is from tenpai. A hand in
In play, reaching tenpai is a central strategic objective. Players weigh which tiles to keep or discard