Dominoes Glossary
Every dominoes game leans on the same handful of words: pip, the line, open end, boneyard. Once you know them, the rules for any variant read like plain English. This glossary defines the terms you will meet across the whole dominoes family, from the classics to the tricky corners of Matador and Fives and Threes.
If you are brand new, skim this page before the rules. You do not need to memorize anything - just get a feel for the vocabulary, then read the full dominoes rules or the FAQ and the words will already make sense. Each term below has its own link, so other pages can point straight to a definition.
💡 Tip: Learn the four core terms first - pip, the line, open end, and boneyard. Almost every rule you read is built from those four ideas.
The tiles
Pip
One of the dots on a tile. Each end of a domino carries from zero to six pips in a standard set, and the pips are how you match, count and score. "Pip count" means the total value of a tile or a hand.
Tile
A single domino piece: a rectangle divided into two ends, each showing zero to six pips. A double-six set holds 28 tiles, covering every combination from 0-0 up to 6-6 exactly once.
Bone
The classic nickname for a tile, from the days when dominoes were carved from bone or ivory. It survives in boneyard, the name for the draw pile. "Bones," "cards" and "men" all mean the tiles.
End
One of the two halves of a tile. A 2-5 tile has a two end and a five end. You connect tiles end to end, and only the value on the touching ends matters - the other half faces outward for future plays.
Suit
All the tiles that carry a given number form that number's suit. There are seven tiles in each suit of a double-six set. Every non-double tile belongs to two suits; a double belongs to only one, which is why doubles are the hardest tiles to place.
Double (doublet)
A tile with the same value on both ends, like 4-4. Also called a doublet. Doubles are laid crosswise to the line in most games, and in All Fives the first double becomes the spinner. Both ends of a crossed double count in the board count.
Blank
An end with zero pips. Blanks match only other blanks, which makes them powerful blockers in a tight game but worth nothing in an All Fives count. Seven tiles in the set carry a blank end.
Bar of soap
Slang for the 0-0 tile, the double blank - a clean white rectangle with no pips at all. It is worth zero points if caught in your hand, but it can lock a blank-heavy line shut like nothing else.
Heavy / light
A heavy tile or hand carries many pips (the 6-6 is the heaviest at twelve); a light one carries few. Heavy tiles score big counts but cost you dearly when the opponent goes out first, so experienced players shed them early.
Double-six set
The standard 28-tile set running from 0-0 to 6-6, used by every game on Dominoes.now. Larger sets exist - double-nine (55 tiles) and double-twelve (91 tiles) - mostly for party games with more players.
The table
The line (line of play)
The chain of played tiles on the table, also called the layout or the train. It grows outward from the first tile as players add matching tiles to its ends. Snaking the line around the table to save space changes nothing - only the open ends matter.
Open end
An end of the line that is available to play on. Most games start with two open ends; a spinner or cross can open up to four. In scoring games, the pips on the open ends form the count you are trying to steer.
Arm
One branch of the layout running out from a spinner or from the cross in Cross Dominoes. Each arm has its own open end, so every new arm gives both players an extra place to play - and an extra number to count.
Spinner
The first double played in games like All Fives and All Threes. The spinner can be played on all four sides: the two new arms open only after both main-line sides of the spinner are covered. It is the pivot the whole layout turns on.
Sniff
The traditional name for the spinner in Muggins (All Fives) - the first double set down. Old rule books say "the sniff may be played on all four sides," which is exactly the spinner rule under another name.
Boneyard
The face-down pool of undealt tiles left after the hands are drawn. In Draw Dominoes you pull from it until you can play; in Block it is never touched, and its hidden tiles decide many endgames.
Hand
The tiles a player holds, kept hidden from the opponent - and also one complete deal from first tile to going out or blocking. A game is usually a series of hands played to a target score.
Shuffle
To mix the tiles face down before drawing hands, traditionally by swirling them on the table with both palms. A digital shuffle uses a seed number, which is how a daily deal can hand the exact same tiles to every player.
Face-up / face-down
A face-up tile shows its pips and sits in the line of play; a face-down tile hides them, like everything in the boneyard. Reading which values must still be face down somewhere is the heart of dominoes strategy.
Cross (layout)
The plus-shaped opening in Cross Dominoes: the first double is set, and the next four plays must attach to its four sides before the game opens up into four free arms.
Scoring
Muggins
The traditional name for All Fives, and the rule it is named for: if a player fails to claim points they scored, the opponent may call "muggins!" and take those points instead. Online, the site counts for you, so nothing goes unclaimed.
Board count
The total of all open ends of the layout, including both ends of a crossed double. In All Fives you score whenever your play leaves the board count at a multiple of five; in All Threes, a multiple of three.
Multiple of five
The scoring trigger in All Fives. Leave the open ends totalling 5, 10, 15 or 20 and you score that many points on the spot. Multiples of three do the same job in All Threes.
Fives and threes score
The dual rule in Fives and Threes: ends divisible by five score the total divided by five, ends divisible by three score the total divided by three, and 15 scores 8 because it divides by both (3 + 5).
Rounding (nearest five)
How All Fives settles a finished hand: the winner scores the pips left in the opponent's hand, rounded to the nearest five. Eight pips round to 10, seven round to 5, and twelve round to 10.
Pip count
The total pips in a hand. It decides blocked games - the lighter hand wins - and it is what the winner collects when a hand ends. Keeping your pip count low is cheap insurance in every variant.
Going out
Playing your last tile, which ends the hand immediately. In scoring games it also pays: the winner collects the opponent's remaining pips, and in Bergen going out is worth a point of its own.
Domino! (chip out)
The traditional call when you go out - playing your final tile is "chipping out" or "making domino." It is where the game's name comes from, and in a real parlor it is said out loud with some relish.
Blocked (locked) game
A hand where nobody can play - every open end is dead and (in draw games) the boneyard is empty. The player with the lower pip count wins the blocked hand and, in scoring games, collects the difference or the loser's count depending on the variant.
Stitched up
A line whose open ends show the same number, so only tiles of that one suit can be played. Stitching the ends up on purpose is a classic blocking move when you hold that suit and your opponent does not.
Target score
The points that end the game. All Fives races to 100, 150 or 250; All Threes to 100; Fives and Threes to exactly 61; Bergen to 15. Single-hand games like Matador and Cross skip the race and settle everything in one deal.
Ways to play
Set (the first play)
The opening tile of a hand, and the act of playing it - "setting" or "the set." Games differ on who sets and with what: Cross must open with a double, while many house rules give the set to whoever holds the heaviest double.
Down (lead)
Having the first play of a hand - "you're down" means it is your set. The down is a real edge in scoring games, since the opening tile can score immediately (the 5-5 sets a 10-point count before the opponent has moved).
Pass (knock)
To skip your turn because you cannot play - traditionally announced by knocking on the table. In Block Dominoes you pass whenever stuck; in draw games you may pass only once the boneyard is empty.
Draw
To take a tile from the boneyard. In Draw Dominoes - and its scoring cousins - you must keep drawing until you find a playable tile or empty the boneyard. Every draw makes your hand heavier.
Renege
To fail to play a playable tile - passing or drawing while holding a legal move. It is against the rules everywhere, whether by accident or to hide a suit. Online play makes it impossible; at a real table it can forfeit the hand.
Blocking
Playing to close the line against your opponent: stitching up the ends, killing the suits they hold, and forcing passes. It is the whole game in Block, and a key weapon everywhere else.
Matador
One of the four wild tiles in Matador Dominoes - the 0-0, 1-6, 2-5 and 3-4, the tiles whose ends sum to seven (or, for the double blank, to nothing at all). A matador can be played on any end at any time, which makes each one a get-out-of-jail card.
Double-header / triple-header
Bergen's scoring plays. A double-header leaves both open ends showing the same value and scores 2 points; a triple-header does it with a double on one end and scores 3.
Round (hand vs. game)
One deal from set to finish is a hand or round; a game is the race across as many hands as it takes to reach the target score. Matador and Cross are played as single hands, so one round is the whole game.
Daily deal (seed)
A single shared deal that everyone plays on the same day, generated from a fixed seed so every player draws identical tiles. Try today's Daily Challenge to compare your result with others.
That is the core vocabulary of dominoes. Keep this glossary open in a tab the first few times you try a new game, and the terms will stick fast. Ready to put them to use? Jump into a classic game of All Fives, or browse the full lineup on the more games page.