# riichi

Pronunciation: say "REE-chee" /ˈɹit͡ʃi/

## Noun

1. A scoring condition (yaku) and 1000-point bet in mahjong, declared when one's hand is ready and waiting for a single tile to complete it.
   - Simple: A bet and scoring bonus in mahjong, made by saying your hand needs just one more tile to win.
   - _With a closed hand one tile from completion, she announced riichi and set down her thousand points._
   - _Calling riichi locks your hand, so you can no longer change any tiles._
2. The verbal declaration a player makes to announce a riichi bet, signaling that the hand is ready for a winning tile.
   - Simple: The call a player makes out loud to announce a riichi bet.
   - _He announced riichi the instant he discarded the tile that made his hand ready._
   - _Her riichi rang out, and the other players braced for a possible win._
3. Clipping of riichi mahjong. *(colloquial)* — Clipping of riichi mahjong
   - Simple: Clipping of riichi mahjong. It's the short, casual name for the game.
   - _A few of us meet every Friday to play riichi._
   - _Online riichi has grown popular among English-speaking players._
4. In pachinko and similar games, the state of being one symbol away from a jackpot, often triggering a special animation before the final symbol appears.
   - Simple: In slot and pachinko games, the moment when you are just one symbol short of hitting a jackpot.
   - _When the reels reached riichi, a flashy animation played before the final symbol landed._
   - _A riichi doesn't guarantee a win, but it means the jackpot is just one symbol away._

## Origin

From Japanese 立直 (rīchi), itself from Chinese 立直 (lìzhí).

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/riichi (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).